All Navy programs 'On the Table'.

• Author: Fein, Geoff S.
• Position: Washington Pulse - Brief Article

Although the Navy does not have the equivalent of a "Comanche" on the horizon, all programs are under review in preparation for the fiscal year 2006 budget submission, said the chief of naval operations.

The Navy is embarking on a new strategy that requires reassessing every program, said Adm. Vernon Clark. A case in point is the current requirement for 55 attack submarines. "That will be a major issue we are examining in the POM '06," Clark told reporters. The POM is the program objective memorandum that sets priorities for the 2006-2011 budget.

The naval aviation requirement is likely to remain at 10 carrier air wings, but there will be fewer airplanes in the fleet overall, and aviators will get fewer flying hours in training. The message is that the Navy plans to get "more utility" out of a smaller force, Clark said. "We are creating a new Navy ... with more capability, but fewer people."

As the Navy gears up to build new classes of surface combatants--the DDX destroyer, the CGX...