Archives
Recent
Littoral Combat Ship
Until recently, the Littoral Combat Ship (LCS) has struggled to overcome the impression that it was the U.S. Navy's "ugly duckling." There were questions regarding the mission for the LCS -- operations in littoral waters, the possibility of building warships in commercial shipyards according to
. . . Read more
Date:
10/25/2011
Now that the decision on an acquisition strategy for the Littoral Combat Ship (LCS) has been taken, the Navy is moving out aggressively to address outstanding issues with the program. One of the most important of these is making sure that mission modules will be available for the ships as they start
. . . Read more
Date:
2/2/2011
If the Navy is able to buy both variants of the Littoral Combat Ship (LCS) each will come with its own combat system. Some sources have suggested that this could be a problem for the Navy because it will have to manage two supply chains and sets of maintenance networks to support those combat systems.
Why
. . . Read more
Date:
12/20/2010
Recent testimony by senior officials of the Department of the Navy before the Senate Appropriations Committee reveal the source of their new-found enthusiasm for buying both variants of the Littoral Combat Ship (LCS). Apparently both bidders, Lockheed Martin and Austal, came in with bids one-third
. . . Read more
Date:
12/15/2010
The U.S. defense industry was waiting with bated breath for the outcome of the competition to build the Littoral Combat Ship (LCS). The original Navy plan had been to build a squadron or more of each of the two designs, one by a Lockheed Martin-led team and the other by a General Dynamics-led team.
. . . Read more
Date:
11/8/2010
The key to the utility of the Littoral Combat Ship (LCS) is its ability to deploy different mission modules in response to changing requirements. The original concept for the LCS envisioned three mission packages, one for anti-submarine warfare, one for anti-surface warfare and one for mine countermeasures
. . . Read more
Date:
10/26/2010
The Navy's close-lipped effort to pick a winning design for the Littoral Combat Ship (LCS) program is generating more rumors than Lindsay Lohan's love-life. Maybe it's the approaching mid-term elections or maybe it's the lack of official information about how the selection process is progressing,
. . . Read more
Date:
10/20/2010
The Sydney Morning Herald reports today that the chief executive officer of Australian shipbuilder Austal is resigning after only two years on the job. Nobody outside the company seems to know why he is leaving. Normally, few people in Washington would care why the CEO of a modest ($500
. . . Read more
Date:
9/22/2010
One might argue that the Littoral Combat Ship (LCS) program has had more than its fair share of challenges. First there was the difficulty of carrying along two very different ship designs, one by a Lockheed Martin-led team (LCS 1 and 3) and another by a General Dynamics led team (LCS 2 and 4).
. . . Read more
Date:
9/7/2010
The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reported on Monday that the United Auto Workers local representing 2,750 employees at Oshkosh Corporation has voted unanimously to reject a one-year contract extension proposed by management. The company offered workers a generous package -- stable healthcare
. . . Read more
Date:
9/3/2010
Every two years, the United States organizes and hosts the Rim of the Pacific Exercise (RIMPAC). This is the world’s largest maritime exercise, this year involving some 32 ships, 5 submarines, more than 170 aircraft and 20,000 personnel. Participating countries include Australia, Canada, Chile,
. . . Read more
Date:
7/29/2010
Sometime this summer an anonymous panel of Navy weapons experts will decide the economic future of a struggling town in rural northeastern Wisconsin. Marinette, Wisconsin is the home of the shipyard building the Lockheed Martin version of the Littoral Combat Ship (LCS), a multi-mission warship
. . . Read more
Date:
4/15/2010
The Administration’s FY 2011 defense budget request asks for $57 million for the Mine Warfare Mission Package (MWMP). Intended primarily to be deployed on the Littoral Combat Ship (LCS), the MWMP is at the heart of the Navy’s effort to develop a new organic mine countermeasure capability. The Navy
. . . Read more
Date:
3/31/2010
A draft overview of the defense department's fiscal 2011 budget request highlights a handful of weapons programs as key to current and future military operations. The document was leaked last week, but media reports have only mentioned a small portion of its content. The chapter of the overview
. . . Read more
Date:
1/27/2010
Yesterday I had the honor of testifying before the Seapower & Expeditionary Forces Subcommittee of the House Armed Services Committee concerning Navy shipbuilding plans. My prepared remarks are below. In general, I agreed with Navy plans for submarines, carriers and surface combatants while
. . . Read more
Date:
1/21/2010
Yesterday, Iran’s minister of defense fired a verbal shot across the bow of the United States, warning that his country could attack our warships in the Persian Gulf in the event of any attack upon Teheran’s nuclear facilities. The chance of such a confrontation rose rather sharply recently with
. . . Read more
Date:
1/20/2010
The U.S. Navy is not waiting for the Obama Administration or the international community to solve the problem of climate change. It is moving ahead to identify the potential impacts of climate change on its operations and to develop the means by which to monitor, assess and respond to those changes.
. . . Read more
Date:
1/11/2010