U.S. Navy
Franz-Stefan Gady, The Diplomat: Pentagon Mulls Buying 2 Ford-Class Supercarriers at Once
The Pentagon continues to evaluate whether procuring two carriers under one contract will save money and time.
The U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) is continuing to evaluate a proposal put forward by the U.S. Navy to procure two nuclear-powered Gerald R. Ford-class aircraft carriers under one contract as a cost- and time-saving measure.
“We are conducting an evaluation to ensure we have the warfighting capabilities to compete and win,” U.S. Deputy Defense Secretary Pat Shanahan was quoted as saying by Bloomberg News on October 19. “Any decision will factor in strengthening the industrial base and delivering best value for taxpayers.”
While U.S. Congress approved the block procurement in the 2019 National Defense Authorization Act, U.S. ship maker Huntington Ingalls Industries – Newport News Shipbuilding (HII-NNS), the Ford-class’ builder, has far failed to meet the U.S. Navy’s cost-cutting requirements. According to one U.S. Navy estimate, the service would save around $2.5 billion with a single buy.
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WNU Editor: The US Navy is hoping to eventually have 12 Ford-class aircraft carriers, up from the 11 carriers in service today. So yes .... buying more should save money. But the problem has always remained the same .... Pentagon procurement has a long history pf sometimes not giving you what you expect.
One thing I hope DJT does (and rather soon) is look at the procurement processes. It's ofc a nightmare to do, as so many players involved, and the military industrial complex is a dangerous beast to mess with, but if he ever wants to get rid of the Russia, Russia narrative - this would be the way to go.. he could make the US military 5-10% more lethal by just improving procurement and gutting all the corruption and inefficiencies going on.. you can spend 700bn a year, and that's good, but to ensure China and Russia stay outmatched overall, he needs to look at that
ReplyDeleteAnon,
ReplyDeleteYou're spot on. There's little that can be added, however, if the US is going to be militarily on par with Russia and China our military will need to be WAY more than just 5 to 10% more lethal. The problems with the US military are ongoing and have been for quite some time. A 5 to 10% improvement, while a step in the right direction, isn't going to get us anywhere near the level of the world's top powers.
The problem is NOT with the men and wonen who are serving. These people who are servibg are patriotic, brave, and honorable. The problem lies with the political leaders, the military industrial complex, and the officers who suck up to them to get promoted.
We point these things out because we love our country and those who are serving not because we hate them as I have been accused of doing. In fact, if someone hates them, by all neans keep supporting the same policies!!