By Tony Capaccio (Bloomberg) -- The U.S. Navy must pay “for the vast majority of defects” on its troubled Littoral Combat Ship, not contractors Lockheed Martin Corp. and Austal Ltd., according to congressional investigators. The government has to foot the bill because the Navy didn’t require warranties that would force contractors to pay many of the costs, as the … [Read more...]
Troubled $29 Billion U.S. Warship Sows Fresh Doubt on Worth
By Tony Capaccio (Bloomberg) -- The U.S. Navy’s Littoral Combat Ship program “stands at a crossroads,” as the service prepares to ask Congress to authorize spending as much as $14 billion to buy more of the troubled vessels, congressional auditors say. Congress must decide “whether a ship that costs twice as much yet delivers less capability than planned warrants an … [Read more...]
Pentagon Chief Says 40 LCS Ships ‘Enough’ for U.S. Navy
SEATTLE, March 3 (Reuters) - U.S. Defense Secretary Ash Carter on Thursday defended the Pentagon's decision to buy just 40 Littoral Combat Ships instead of the 52 originally planned, saying the money saved would allow the Navy to buy more missiles and undersea technology. Carter told reporters during a visit to Seattle that the U.S. military was making a deliberate choice to … [Read more...]
USS Milwaukee Arrives at BAE Shipyard in Mayport
The U.S. Navy's San Diego-based littoral combat ship USS Milwaukee (LCS 5) arrived at the BAE shipyard in Mayport, Florida earlier this week to complete repairs following a loss of propulsion incident in December. Milwaukee left the Joint Expeditionary Base Little Creek in Norfolk, Virginia on February 17th after having completed initial engineering repairs on her propulsion … [Read more...]
U.S. Navy’s LCS Struggles to Fend Off Swarm Attacks, Tests Show
By Tony Capaccio (Bloomberg) -- The U.S. Navy’s Littoral Combat Ship struggled in drills at sea to fend off a swarm of small attacking vessels like the Iranian boats it could encounter in the Persian Gulf, according to the Pentagon’s chief weapons tester. The fast-attack boats were ultimately defeated by the USS Coronado during three mock engagements in August and … [Read more...]