Growing shipyards for 355-ship Navy

Growing the Navy’s fleet to 355 ships may require extending the service of current ships, reactivating ships such as the 25-year-young Perry-class (FFG-7s) guided missile frigates, and investing heavily in the capacity of the seven primary shipyards, a panel of experts testified July 25 before the Senate Armed Services Committee. The Navy currently has 276 ships. The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) estimates the earliest the Navy could reach 355 ships is 2035 provided constant funding for 18 years. The biggest challenge to reaching 355 is the nation’s shipbuilding capability. The workforce at the nation’s five large and two smaller shipyards would need $4B in infrastructure upgrades, and a 40-percent hike in the workforce over the next decade. The Navy is conducting a feasibility assessment for extending and reactivating ships. (Source: Stars and Stripes 07/26/17) Gulf Coast Note: Navy shipbuilding is dominated by two huge corporations: General Dynamics (GD) and Huntington Ingalls Industries (HII), which includes Ingalls-Pascagoula, Miss. When the two Littoral Combat Ship (LCS) shipbuilders are added to the five shipyards of GD and HII, there are seven shipyards building the majority of the Navy’s fleet. HII-Ingalls and GD's Bath (Maine) Iron Works build destroyers and amphibious warships. Fincantieri Marinette (Wis.) Marine and Austal USA of Mobile, Ala., build different variants of LCS. GD's National Steel and Shipbuilding Co. of San Diego specializes in the larger, complex auxiliary and support ships.