There's a saying about punctuality: "If you're on time ... you're late."
The crew of the US Navy's newest littoral combat ship, the future USS Little Rock LCS 9, is taking that saying seriously. Originally scheduled to arrive at Canalside in Buffalo on Friday, Dec. 8, the ship is now scheduled to arrive four days early, at 9 a.m. Monday, Dec. 4.
The commissioning ceremony for the future USS Little Rock LCS 9 is scheduled for 11 a.m. Saturday, Dec. 16, at Canalside in Buffalo. This date has not changed.
"With the early arrival, people will have four extra days to get a look at this state-of-the-art warship," said Maurice L. Naylon III, chairman of the USS Little Rock LCS 9 commissioning committee. "We'll also have four extra days for the men and women of LCS Crew 109 to experience all that Buffalo and Western New York has to offer."
The commissioning committee is working on plans for an official "welcome party" for the ship when it arrives Monday. Naylon said the all-volunteer committee has been hard at work for months planning for the ship's arrival and the various events during "Commissioning Week" Dec. 8-17.
The fact the ship will be in Buffalo four days early will not interfere with the committee's plans or the ceremony, which is sold out. The general public will be able to see the USS Little Rock LCS 9 while the ship is docked at Canalside. A schedule of events for "Commissioning Week" is available at
www.usslittlerocklcs9.org.
Canalside will be open during the week so the general public can view LCS 9 without a ticket. However, Canalside streets will be closed to vehicle traffic. Visitors are encouraged to use the NFTA Metro Rail to get to Canalside.
Canalside will be a secured area and anyone visiting Canalside during "Commissioning Week" will be required to pass through TSA-type security screening.
This event is historic for LCS 9, her crew, the Navy and all of Buffalo and Western New York, as this will be the first time in the 242-year U.S. Navy history that a new ship is commissioned alongside her namesake - the original USS Little Rock, now on permanent display at the Buffalo & Erie County Naval & Military Park. That ship was in service from Aug. 27, 1944, until her decommissioning in November 1976.
