 U.S.S. Freedom returned to its San Diego home board after completing its 10-month maiden deployment, marking a milestone in the Navy's littoral combat ship program. Freedom's deployment proved that the LCS can get the job done, and that it is a vital multi-mission asset to the fleet. Since Freedom's return, the Navy has looked at the effects of the ship's deployment and began improving the LCS program. These include a more efficient chain of command, adding more members to the crews, and underway maintenance improvements. The changes made after Freedom's deployment are designed to improve flexibility and mission readiness in other LCSs before their deployments. The Navy's third LCS, USS Fort Worth, is scheduled to deploy later this year. Read the full story on the Navy Live blog. From the Defense Media Activity, I'm Petty Officer Ian Cotter.