Navy to Rethink Force Structure Composition.

AuthorHarper, Jon
PositionBUDGET MATTERS

The Navy will conduct a new force structure assessment next year which could have major long term budgetary implications.

The most recent review, released in 2016, called for ramping up the size of the fleet to 355 ships. The service had indicated it would need about $20 billion annually in the coming years for its shipbuilding plan, even though its force level goal wouldn't be achieved until the 2050s under that blueprint.

However, the Navy will conduct another force structure assessment in 2019, said Vice Adm. William Merz, deputy chief of naval operations for warfare systems.

It will look at the planned force mix and assess whether the service needs to adjust it for each type of ship, he said.

"We're still very committed to that [355 ship] number, but we're only committed to the point where it's the right mix of ships," he said. "If we build 300 of the wrong types of ships then that 355 becomes meaningless."

Bryan Clark, an analyst at the Center for Strategic and Budgetary Assessments and a former Navy officer, doesn't expect the total ship count called for in the new study to deviate much from the current goal.

"But you will see probably some significant changes with regard to the mix," said Clark, who is familiar with the thinking of Navy planners. "There's going to probably be a reduction in the number of large surface combatants and maybe more smaller combatants."

The service could procure unmanned vessels to make up for the reduction in capacity that might result from having smaller manned platforms, he said.

Clark also sees the potential for more small-deck amphibious ships.

"They might start treating the large-deck amphibs as F-35 [joint strike fighter] carriers to a greater degree, which means you might have to shift some of the capacity onto... smaller-deck amphibs" and buy more of them, he said.

The aircraft carrier and...

To continue reading

Request your trial

VLEX uses login cookies to provide you with a better browsing experience. If you click on 'Accept' or continue browsing this site we consider that you accept our cookie policy. ACCEPT