US Navy News and updates

StingrayOZ

Super Moderator
Staff member
The USS Fitzgerald reports are pretty damming..

Secret Probe Into USS Fitzgerald Disaster Revealed a Ship in Appalling Shape
A warship doomed by ‘confusion, indecision, and ultimately panic’ on the bridge

Court details are here.

No dismissal in court-martial of USS Fitzgerald commander

However, given the recent spate of collisions, its hard not to draw out a bigger problem and not just isolated incidents.

Fort’s team of investigators described a bridge team that was overworked and exhausted, plagued by low morale, facing a relentless tempo of operations decreed by admirals far above them, distrustful of their superiors and, fatally, each other.

And Navy officials knew all of that at least a year before the tragedy.
Many lessons to be learnt, hopefully some very positive changes for the future can come out of these incidents.
 

AegisFC

Super Moderator
Staff member
Verified Defense Pro
I noted a 70% crew turnover after an extended dry dock period and no workups. I don't recognize the ship described.
 

John Fedup

The Bunker Group
Looks promising with the mentioned electronics and weapons, especially at $800 million per boat. Hopefully the price doesn’t ballon out and the build number gets cut. I guess these will be diesel only?
 

StobieWan

Super Moderator
Staff member
Looks promising with the mentioned electronics and weapons, especially at $800 million per boat. Hopefully the price doesn’t ballon out and the build number gets cut. I guess these will be diesel only?

I don't think you can get the speed requirement (28 knots) with CODAD - and all the entries are GT/Diesel in some arrangement or another.

I suspect the recently reduced speed requirement might have been aimed at making it easier for the Legend NSC variant to qualify.
 

Todjaeger

Potstirrer
It should be interesting to see how much of the tech going into the FFG-X eventually gets retrofitted into LCS.
Unless the FFG(X) programme is awarded to either of the designs based off the two LCS classes, then I do not really expect a significant amount of modification or retro-fitting to the existing LCS vessels. After all, if neither of the two LCS-based designs are selected, that would suggest that the combination of cost and capability was insufficient when compared to other options. It could also quite easily be that of the systems which are found to be really useful and/or desirable aboard ship are ones which cannot be easily fitted to the LCS designs.

After all, the larger of the two LCS classes is still nearly 1,000 tonnes less displacement than the likely smallest of the conventional mono-hulls competing, that is nearly 25% lower displacement. 1,000 tonnes 'extra' displacement, or 2,000+ tonnes if one of the other two was selected instead, is a great deal of displacement. There would plenty of displacement to carry and support extra crew, fit more weapons and/or sensors, etc. It would also be worth noting that could also potentially increase the power generation capacity as well as the ability of a vessel to remain in an area before needing to replenish supplies.
 

barney41

Member
If so, VLS would probsbly be unfeasible but at the very least I'd expect the addition of an OTH missile capability, most likely via deck launchers. This would be in keeping with the Distributed Lethality concept.
 

Ranger25

Active Member
Staff member

Ranger25

Active Member
Staff member

StobieWan

Super Moderator
Staff member
It should be interesting to see how much of the tech going into the FFG-X eventually gets retrofitted into LCS.

Both LCS designs don't have a lot of margin unfortunately - there's about 150 tons of free displacement that can be assigned to various systems so anything you add, well, that has to subtract from that total.

If there's a like for like swap like a sensor or something, yeah, that can work and maybe a single face rotating EASR might be a potential trade for the existing TRS or Sea Giraffe could happen but there's no room for a lot of additional stuff without kissing goodbye to the ability to fit mission modules.
 

Ranger25

Active Member
Staff member
Both LCS designs don't have a lot of margin unfortunately - there's about 150 tons of free displacement that can be assigned to various systems so anything you add, well, that has to subtract from that total.

If there's a like for like swap like a sensor or something, yeah, that can work and maybe a single face rotating EASR might be a potential trade for the existing TRS or Sea Giraffe could happen but there's no room for a lot of additional stuff without kissing goodbye to the ability to fit mission modules.
Agreed, the only consistent upgrades I’ve hear discussed are the deck mounted quad OTH ASHM launchers. Beyond that the UDN has also discussed specializing each hull, ASW etc, and seems to be moving away from the modular concept. Perhaps in part due to the delays, cost overruns, and lack luster results of the modules.
 

barney41

Member
NAMMO has unveiled a ramjet-powered artillery round with a range of approaching 100Km. No estmated cost at present buytthe Navy is reportedly looking at it as a potential round for the DDG-1000 AGS.

 

John Fedup

The Bunker Group
There have been a number of stories reporting on the plan not to refuel the Harry S.Truman thus retiring the ship 25 years early while at the same time an order for 2 Ford class carriers has been placed. All sorts of cost benefit and preservation of CVN building skills are offered up as to why this makes sense. I really don’t know but I don’t think Congress will allow this.

There is likely some concern as to how viable CVNs are as missile technology advances. Are 14 billion dollar CVNs too large an investment especially when the combat radius of its jets force the carrier to operate within missile range even with AAR? Perhaps Newport News (along with Electric Boat) should be building more SSN/BN and maybe SSGNs instead of CVNs. The other link describes the growing danger for surface ships in defending themselves via human decision making. Without knowing how effective rival missiles really are, I admit future decisions will be difficult. Needless to say the missile defence issue is a concern for all new surface ship programs.

Red Sky in Morning: Naval Combat at the Dawn of Hypersonics


Nothing Projects Power Like an Aircraft Carrier. Does the Pentagon Think Otherwise?
 
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