Update: LCS buys limited to 35

WASHINGTON - Congress slashed funding for the Littoral Combat Ship’s three plug-in warfare mission modules – designed to initially perform - in the FY 2020 defense appropriations bill. The cuts may further delay the ships’ capabilities in mine countermeasures (MCM), surface warfare (SW) and anti-submarine warfare (ASW). Currently, there are 35 LCS funded, but Congress has cut funding of the modules annually since 2015. The LCS program is structured with each ship deploys with one of the three modules that are still under development. Congress cut some $145.5M (52%) from the mission-modules that includes general equipment that comes with all modules. The MCM module saw 77 percent shuffled to another section of the budget. But the bulk of that slicing involves cuts to Knifefish minesweeping drones and unmanned surface vehicles that are intended to deploy sensors, according to appropriators. [The MCM module initially, and some aspects still under development, began at Naval Surface Warfare Center Panama City, Fla.] The SW missiles package saw a $12M cut (45%). ASW saw 11 percent cut to address cost overruns of its variable depth sonar despite it partially meeting initial operational capability (IOC). A year ago, the Navy took delivery of Raytheon’s Dual-mode Array Transmitter Mission System, which joins the MH-60R helicopter, multifunction towed array and the SQQ-89 acoustic processing, making the ASW package ready to begin the integration stage. All of the aviation components for MCM have reached IOC, but the unmanned surface vehicle paired with drones were hit with budget cuts. The Navy is planning to field 10 ASW, 24 MCM, and 10 SW mission modules. Originally, the program was designed for each ship to be able to switch module pierside. But, the Navy reorganized in 2016, making each ship with a single mission. In FY-19, Congress bought three more LCS than the Navy requested. It’s not clear whether lawmakers plan to support the purchase of more mission modules, according to the Congressional Research Service. When mission modules become available, the Navy has been fielding parts. In September, the Navy deployed the LCS Gabrielle Giffords (Austal USA build at Mobile, Ala.) with the Kongsberg-Raytheon Naval Strike Missile, along with Northrop Grumman’s unmanned MQ-8C Fire Scout helicopter for over-the-horizon targeting, a significant step forward for the program. (Source: Defense News 12/19/19) https://www.defensenews.com/naval/2019/12/19/congress-slashes-funding-for-the-navys-lcs-sensors-again/ UPDATE: The FY 2020 defense authorization bill signed by President Donald Trump limits the Navy to 35 total Littoral Combat Ships (LCS) and bars further funding. "None of the funds authorized" in the National Defense Authorization Act can be used to exceed "the total procurement quantity of 35 Littoral Combat Ships," Congress stipulated. There are 35 currently under contract. The action signals Congress' frustration with the program, and intention to switch focus to a new guided-missile frigate (FFG(X). (Source: Military.com 12/23/19) https://www.military.com/daily-news/2019/12/23/new-law-restricts-navy-35-littoral-combat-ships.html