Navy reanalyzing 355-ship plan

The Navy is reanalyzing its 355-ship build-up plan of 2016 with an already underway new force-structure assessment, said Chief of Naval Operations Adm. John Richardson. "We're on a path to grow the Navy," said CNO, adding that the goal is to achieve "the most capable naval force" he told Military.com on Feb. 2. Prior studies by both the Navy and outside sources have indicated that the sea-service’s optimal fleet size ranges are from the high 300s to 400s, Richardson said. If the 355 number makes no sense, "we'll get a new number," CNO proclaimed. “We might hold to it, we may not, (but) the analysis is in progress." Todd Harrison, director of the Aerospace Security Project at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, said the 355-ship plan needs to be realistic given less likely dollars for future Pentagon budgets, including FY 2020’s requests. “(Y)ou'll need trade-offs," he said Jan. 31. "Things have to go,” he continued. "The 355-ship Navy is out the window if you want to implement the plan." Some programs will have to be reviewed or outright canceled - carrier, frigate or amphibious ship purchases - to better align with NDS and pragmatic costs. As of January, the Navy had 287 ships that were capable of conducting operations. (Source: Military.com 02/01/19)