Sadler notes that even if the US gamble pays off, the US Navy will still have fewer ships to train future crews. In a May 2022 Heritage Foundation article, Brent Sadler points out that the Biden administration’s “divest to invest” naval shipbuilding strategy shrinks the US Navy’s capability outright while placing too much faith in “wonder weapons” such as unmanned warships that are still in the prototype stage. In contrast, the Biden administration’s plan for 280 ships by 2027 and, ultimately, 363 ships by 2045 is small in comparison.Īlthough US warships may be more advanced, quality cannot replace quantity and physical presence. That gap is expected to grow with China having 400 ships by 2025 and 440 by 2030, with much of that growth coming in the form of major combatants such as cruisers and destroyers. Photo: HandoutĪlthough John Cole and Thomas Ulmer note in a December 2017 article for Defense 360 that the US briefly reconsidered reactivating the Perry class in 2016, that plan was shelved as the frigates would face maintenance, personnel and capability issues.Ĭole and Ulmer point out that shipbuilders may no longer make the legacy frigates’ components, training new crews would sap limited resources that could be spent acquiring newer naval assets, and that refurbished frigates are unsuitable as a capability gap filler for higher-end naval assets.Īside from addressing a capability gap in performing low-intensity missions, the US may need to match China’s rapidly growing navy regarding ship numbers.Īsia Times noted in February 2023 that as of 2022, the People’s Liberation Army-Navy (PLA-N) is the world’s largest navy with 340 ships, while the US Navy is the second-largest at 280 ships. The US Navy Littoral Combat Ship Gabrielle Giffords is armed with the service’s new Naval Strike Missile. He says that while the US Navy tried to replace the Perry-class with Littoral Combat Ship (LCS) corvettes, the LCS proved not as effective as hoped with multiple problems with weapons systems, survivability and hull integrity, leading to the type’s early retirement. Hendrix says that frigates and corvettes, with their smaller size, smaller crews, lower sensors and weapons complexity, and lower costs make them feasible to purchase in large numbers to perform low-intensity missions. Jerry Hendrix notes in an April 2020 article for National Review that the US practice of deploying ships such as Arleigh Burke destroyers for tasks like counter-piracy operations, showing the flag and maintaining persistent naval presence may detract these critical naval assets from more important roles such as providing missile defense and other high-end missions. That decision has seen the US Navy deploy overly-capable ships for low-intensity missions. Still too early to write off Myanmar’s junta That left the US Navy without frigates for the first time since 1943. However, he says that led to the frigates ending in worn condition, leading to their removal from service in 2003, with the last Perry-class frigate decommissioned in 2015. Suciu notes that the 71-ship Perry class had a 40-year service life performing low-intensity missions such as maritime interdiction operations, counter-narcotic efforts and engagement with partner navies. Peter Suciu notes in an August 2021 article for The National Interest that the Perry-class frigate was a low-cost design built between 19 intended to replace the US Navy’s World War II destroyers and meet large Cold War fleet numbers that set stringent design controls on size and costs. Since decommissioning the successful Oliver Hazard Perry-class, the US Navy has not operated frigates, opening a capability gap in specific mission areas. The Popular Mechanics report mentions that the desire to add a second shipyard for production could yield 40 more ships in the next ten years, with around 50 ships seen as the ideal number for the US Navy. The comment underscores the perceived need to ramp up production of upcoming Constellation-class frigates, with the US Navy initially committing to acquire 20 ships. US chief of Naval Operations Admiral Mike Gilday, during a recent hearing of the Senate Armed Forces Committee, said that he wants to boost US naval shipbuilding from two ships at one shipyard per year to production at two shipyards, Popular Mechanics reported. The US plans to catch up with China’s navy by building its first frigates since the early 2000s, a strategic scheme that may make up for dwindling fleet numbers but not lost time.
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