Navy plans to cut back on Littoral Combat Ships

[unhappycamper]

Navy plans to cut back on Littoral Combat Ships
By Jeff Schogol, Stars and Stripes
Mideast edition, Wednesday, February 6, 2008

ARLINGTON, Va. — The Navy is cutting back on the number of Littoral Combat Ships it plans to buy in fiscal 2009 from six to two ships.

Officials determined the program “wasn’t technically ready” for six ships in fiscal 2009, said Vice Adm. Stephen Stanley, of the Joint Staff.

“We weren’t able to get as far as we wanted to,” said Stanley, director for force structure, resources and assessment for the Joint Staff.

Littoral Combat Ships are designed to operate in shallow waters and have weapons that can be tailored for specific missions, but the program ran into a series of setbacks in 2007.

Last January, the Navy temporarily stopped work on the second of two ships being built by Lockheed Martin after cost overruns on the first ship.


Rest of article at: http://www.stripes.com/article.asp?section=104&article=52232



uhc comment: The two ships they are buying cost as much as the original estimate for six ships.

[Ian David]

1. I thought it was spelled with a "C." n/t