[Peace-discuss] Ever bigger & costlier navy

[Szoke, Ron]

The U.S. Navy Will Add Nine New Ships in 2017



Kyle Mizokami
Popular Mechanics<http://www.popularmechanics.com/>  January 4, 2017


   This year the U.S. Navy will add nine ships to the battle force as it slowly grows towards a 300-ship fleet. Most likely, these new ships are a sign of things to come as President-elect Donald Trump campaigned on a promise to boost the Navy to 350 ships<http://www.popularmechanics.com/military/navy-ships/a24284/trump-350-ship-navy/>.
    Nine ships are scheduled to be commissioned into the fleet in 2017, meaning they are fully manned, functional, and assigned to a major command. The total includes one aircraft carrier, two destroyers, two nuclear attack submarines, and four littoral combat ships.
    The Navy is set to gain the USS Gerald R. Ford, the first in a new class of aircraft carrier. The Ford has the same aircraft capacity as the older Nimitz<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nimitz-class_aircraft_carrier>-class carriers, typically 64 aircraft but capable of embarking up to 90. The carrier introduces a host of new technologies, including a redesigned island, electromagnetic catapult system, new aircraft arresting gear, a new nuclear reactor, and new multifunction and volume search radars.
    Ford is the first new aircraft carrier in eight years, following the USS George H.W. Bush in January 2009. Construction began in 2005 but technical problems the Navy blames on a brand-new ship design pushed it behind schedule and over budget. Ford has incurred an estimated $3.2 billion cost in overruns<https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=2&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=0ahUKEwjhgpmc2abRAhVnxFQKHReYAWEQFggjMAE&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.military.com%2Fdaily-news%2F2016%2F07%2F13%2Fdelivery-of-new-carrier-ford-to-navy-delayed-yet-again.html&usg=AFQjCNF_vTRHbtQe14TCdJw2GD8_NwnwkA&sig2=VmaIeeLjecaZuXxCA2_Spw> and was originally set to be commissioned in 2014<https://www.navytimes.com/articles/delivery-of-navys-costliest-aircraft-carrier-delayed-again>.
    Ford's introduction will boost the Navy's carrier force back up to 11 ships. Federal law requires the Navy to keep 11 carriers on active duty at all times, but the retirement of USS Enterprise<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/USS_Enterprise_(CVN-65)> necessitated a temporary waiver.   . . .

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