" Did the US Navy Steal Its New Warship Designs?" Topic

"It's the cornerstone of the U.S. Navy's future fleet. And a legendary ship-designer says the idea was all his.

It's been rough sailing for the U.S. Navy's new Littoral Combat Ship. The speedy, warship has come under fire for being lightly-armed, weakly-built, undermanned, and prone to rusting—and yet, at the same time, way too expensive.

And in recent months, four of the 400-foot-long warships—half of the Littoral Combat Ships currently in commission—have suffered serious engine breakdowns, possible signs of systemic problems with the ship's design and operating procedures…"

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Amicalement
Armand

if they did can they give them back?

The design was all his. And he admits to it??

Well, not so much the US Navy, but Boeing…

Though seems to be a wonderful example of why continuously changing the spec during development is woefully stupid idea – I'm sure the programme will end up as a stock example of how not to things in QA and PM courses in a few years time.

If so, we've been duped.

What armaments does the LCS have? I see a deck gun and a CWS but that looks like it.

"It's the cornerstone of the U.S. Navy's future fleet."

I'd say that's the Arleigh Burke (76 planned). LCS is a costly and pointless footnote.

What armaments does the LCS have? I see a deck gun and a CWS but that looks like it.

That's kinda it for the time being.

1 x 57mm gun
1 x SeaRAM CIWS (short range SAM)
2 X 0.50 cal guns
2 x 30mm Bushmaster

There's a plan to integrate AGM-116 Hellfire on basic LCS and come up with a better armed "frigate" version with AGM-88 Harpoon and 2 25mm guns.

Even with upgrades, it's pitiful firepower for a 3000-3500 ton ship.

Here's what around friends in China get for under 2,500 tons:

8 × YJ-83 SSM in 2 x 4-cell box launchers
1 × 8-cell HQ-7 Surface-to-air missile system
1 × PJ33A dual 100 mm gun (automatic)
4 × Type 76A dual 37 mm (1.5 in) AA guns
2 × 6-tube Type 3200 ASW rocket launchers (36 rockets)
2 × DC racks & launcher
6 × torpedo launchers
2 × Type 946/PJ-46 15-barrel decoy rocket launchers

Or our friends in Singapore for 3,200 tons:

8 × RGM-84C Harpoon SSM (there is allocated space for 24 Harpoon missiles)

4 × Sylver A50 8-cell VLS for MBDA Aster 15/30[3]

2 × B515 triple tubes with reloads for
EuroTorp A244/S Mod 3 torpedoes

Oto Melara 76mm Super Rapid gun
4 × CIS 50MG 12.7 mm (0.50 in) HMG
2 × 25mm Mk38 Mod2 Typhoon Weapon Station Stabilised Gun

Etc etc

And I'm not even going into actual electronic combat systems or level of protection (LCS is built to civilian standards, not military in terms of redundancy and protection).

If we did steal it I would have hoped we'd steal something better.

-Will

Of course, the real reason why Western ships seem to be so under-gunned is we don't want to hurt anyone.