The U.S. Navy's Littoral Combat Ship Is A 'Turkey'

USS Independence (LCS 2) of the General Dynamics Independence Class (front right) and USS Freedom (LCS 1) of the Lockheed Martin Freedom Class littoral combat ships. Naval-Technology.com

It’s Time To Sink The Littoral Combat Ship -- William D. Hartung and Jacob Marx, Defense One

It is more important than ever that the Department of Defense spend taxpayer money wisely as the United States economy struggles and the Pentagon budget comes down from its post-World War II peak. This is particularly true for the Navy, which many strategists see assuming an expanded role in protecting U.S. global economic and security interests. Though the optimal scope of the Navy’s mission is up for debate, it’s clear that U.S. leaders envision diverse objectives requiring diverse maritime capabilities. What should be equally clear is that there is no need for the littoral combat ship.

On paper, the Littoral Combat Ship, or LCS, is the high tech, multipurpose answer to the Navy’s 21st Century needs. It is supposed to be fast, maneuverable and able to operate in shallow water. And it is built to adapt to different tasks through a system of exchangeable weapons and equipment, known as “mission packages.” The Navy asserts that an LCS should be able to sail into port and head back to sea in 96 hours, refitted with a completely new payload. This would have allowed the LCS to replace a slew of small and medium warships, 56 at last count. Most importantly, at a projected price tag of $450 million for one sea frame and three mission packages, it appeared to offer three ships for the price of one.

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My Comment: The U.S. Air Force has it's turkey (albeit a bigger one) in the form of the F-35 .... and the U.S. Navy has it's Littoral Combat Ship. I have never been a fan of this program .... and now the worst aspects of it are becoming known as summarized by William D. Hartung and Jacob Marx in the above post. My prediction .... the Littoral Combat Ship program will be terminated when additional Pentagon budget cuts become mandated.