CNO: Need more ships, quickly

The Navy needs more ships to be built faster in order to keep up with global nations spending heavily on their maritime prowess, says CNO Adm. John Richardson. “(I)f we’re going to remain competitive we’d better pick up that pace and match it at least, if not exceed it,” he said May 16 at a briefing in Singapore. CNO spoke ahead of the release this week of the Navy’s White Paper, which will outline future requirements. In April, CNO told Breaking Defense that shipbuilders need to speed up designs and cut delivery times by half. The President is set to release his FY 2018 budget next week. He pledged to expand the Navy’s fleet from 272 to 350 ships. CNO has defended the Littoral Combat Ship program, after Obama-era SECDEFs cut back the numbers planned. LCS is “becoming stronger, more lethal, more survivable, more reliable,” Richardson said. LCS and a future frigate successor would be one way to deliver on Trump’s plan to expand the fleet. The Navy will continue to delay by up to a year plans to award a multibillion-dollar construction contract for that future frigate, say service officials. (Source: Bloomberg News 05/16/17) Gulf Coast Note: Austal USA shipyards of Mobile, Ala., build the Independence Class of LCS, and will likely be considered for the future frigate contract. In December 2010, Austal received a Navy contract worth $3.5B for construction of up to 10 more LCS. Austal USA is also a prime contractor for the Expeditionary Fast Transport (EPF) ship. That contract calls for 12 ships and was valued at $1.9B.