Amphibious Tactical Support Units (Displacement Craft)

The Amphibious Tactical Support Units program, outlined under Program Element (PE) 0204413N in the Department of the Navy's Research, Development, Test & Evaluation (RDT&E) budget, is focused on advancing the operational effectiveness, sustainability, and modernization of the Navy's amphibious support capabilities. The program's primary objectives are to enhance the performance, reliability, and readiness of amphibious tactical units, with a particular emphasis on the Landing Craft, Air Cushion (LCAC), Landing Craft, Utility (LCU 1700), and the integration of advanced manufacturing technologies to support expeditionary logistics.

A significant portion of the budget is allocated to the research, development, and testing of the LCAC and the new LCU 1700 class. The LCAC initiatives are centered on technology transfer to current craft, with specific goals to improve sustainability, reliability, and readiness through performance analyses, communications upgrades, and compliance with evolving cybersecurity requirements. Additional objectives include reducing total ownership costs by implementing cost-saving measures and enhancing lifecycle management. These efforts are executed by the Naval Surface Warfare Centers and Marine Corps test elements, ensuring that the LCAC fleet remains operationally relevant and cost-effective.

The LCU 1700 program is a direct response to the aging LCU 1610 class, which has surpassed its intended service life, with an average craft age exceeding 50 years. The LCU 1700 is designed to provide similar payload, range, and speed, while ensuring interoperability with current amphibious operations. The program's objectives include risk reduction, developmental and operational testing, and production acceptance inspections and certifications. The acquisition strategy involves a detail design and construction contract with options for additional craft, and ongoing testing and certification by Navy and Marine Corps entities.

Another key line item within this program element is the Navy Expeditionary Combat Command (NECC) Additive Manufacturing initiative. This effort aligns with the National Defense Strategy and Navy strategic guidance to provide resilient and agile logistics support through advanced manufacturing technologies. The program's goals are to identify and field additive manufacturing systems capable of producing critical parts in operational environments, thereby increasing fleet operational availability, enabling on-demand production, and reducing supply chain costs. The program also seeks to evaluate the implications of additive manufacturing across doctrine, organization, training, materiel, leadership, personnel, facilities, and policy.

The NECC Additive Manufacturing program includes the development and assessment of technologies for organizational-level maintenance, modification of IT systems to maintain authority to operate, and evaluation of 3D printers and support systems for military utility. The program conducts end-user training, field experimentation, and technology insertion during fleet exercises to validate additive manufacturing system capabilities and address integration challenges. These activities are coordinated by the expeditionary programs office in collaboration with naval warfare centers and the broader additive manufacturing community of practice.

In FY 2026 and beyond, the NECC Additive Manufacturing effort is being reorganized under a new project code to consolidate advanced manufacturing RDT&E funding across the Department of the Navy. This transition is intended to streamline management and ensure a unified approach to developing and fielding advanced manufacturing capabilities in support of expeditionary operations.