REMARKS AS PREPARED BY
MARITIME ADMINISTRATOR REAR ADM (RET.) ANN PHILLIPS
FOR NSMV STEEL CUTTING #3
PHILADELPHIA, PA
 

Thank you [Kevin]. 
 
Thank you, TOTE Services, and thank you, Philly Shipyard for hosting today's ceremony and, of course, for your incredible work on the National Security Multi-Mission Vessels.  On behalf of the Maritime Administration and the Department of Transportation, it’s great to be here with you today. I am especially pleased to see the cadets from Maine Maritime Academy, under the guide of their new president, Rear Admiral Jerry Paul, for they represent the reason and purpose for the Federal Government’s investment in modern training capabilities for our future merchant mariners.
  
The Maritime Administration’s mission is to foster, promote, and develop the maritime industry of the United States and to meet the nation’s economic and security needs. As part of our work, we help support  State Maritime Academies across the country as they educate the next wave of America’s maritime workforce. 
 
Along with graduates from the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy, State Maritime Academy graduates play vital roles in our security and economy and they need cutting-edge training platforms to prepare them for their careers at sea. 
 
From concept to reality, today's milestone begins the physical process of building a vessel that will provide a  world-class training experience to our future mariners and provide extraordinary new capabilities to the United States.  

Each NSMV will have state-of-the art training facilities including a full training bridge, classrooms, and staterooms where cadets can learn the evolving technologies employed on the most modern vessels.  Each will also have modern hospital facilities, a helicopter pad, and the ability to accommodate up to 1,000 people in times of humanitarian need.

The United States has never had—and never built—such vessels before and the construction of these vessels is an incredible accomplishment.

The construction of these ships is also helping to strengthen our shipbuilding industry and showcasing a new, innovative model for producing ships.
  
Philadelphia has long served as a strategic hub for America's maritime industry, and this new class of ships advances that legacy with another historic contribution to the nation. 

I cannot wait to return here next year as we take delivery of the first vessel!
 
Thank you.

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