Free Republic

The Bath shipyard has contracts to build 11 new DDG-51 Arleigh Burke-class destroyers for the Navy over the next eight years. Bath Iron Works is known for building Navy warships from the ground up, but if it wants to stay in business it has to do the same to its workforce. The shipyard is in the midst of a massive hiring push to finish a backlog of ship work and reinforce its army of mechanics, many of whom are nearing retirement age. With Maine’s historically low 3 percent unemployment rate and a statewide skilled labor shortage, BIW can’t afford to...

Delays in the construction of the first two of three next-generation Zumwalt-class (DDG-1000) guided missile destroyers at the General Dynamics Bath Iron Works shipyard are partially to blame for slowing work on two Arleigh Burke (DDG-51) destroyers being built at the Maine yard, USNI News has learned. Several sources told USNI News that due to myriad reasons — including the size of the yard, the composition of the workforce at BIW and continued setbacks in the delivery of the first two next-generation Zumwalts — production of the future Burkes Rafael Peralta (DDG-115) and Thomas Hudner (DDG-116) have been delayed by...

The re-start of the DDG51 Arleigh Burke destroyer production line is moving forward with the launch of the first new Flight IIA vessel – John Finn (DDG 113) in March after a five-year gap. Speaking at Sea-Air-Space 2015, Cdr Seth Miller, the production manager of the DDG51 programme said that the launch took place at Huntington Ingalls Industries (HII) shipyard on 28 March with the next ship, Ralph Johnson (DDG 114) due to be launched on 6 November. The keels of two more ships will also be laid down this year. Paul Ignatius (DDG 117) will be laid on 10...

The Navy needs to perfect three technologies on its quest for its next generation of large warships, Rear Adm. Thomas Rowden, director of surface warfare (N96) for the Office of the Chief of Naval Operations (OPNAV) told USNI News in an interview in the Pentagon on Jan. 9. Energy weapons (like lasers), electromagnetic rail guns and advanced energy systems to power the new weapons are all likely to be part of the next major surface ship, though the specifics for a ship (or ships) — which won’t begin construction in 15 years — are far from settled. “There’s some technologies...

Modernizing The Aegis Fleet Is Smart Move By The U.S. Navy 17:42 GMT, January 12, 2011 With all the attention being given to reducing the cost of national defense, it is important to acknowledge the value of upgrading current platforms to provide them with additional capability and, hopefully, longer service lives. The Army has a program to upgrade its fleets of Abrams tanks, Bradley fighting vehicles and Stryker wheeled vehicles. The Air Force is modernizing its fleet of A-10 ground attack aircraft and, according to Secretary Gates, will modernize its fleet of aging F-15s with new radars. One of the...

Navy savings may bolster DDG-51s By Seth Koenig, Times Record Staff Published: Friday, January 7, 2011 2:16 PM EST BATH — U.S. Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, on Thursday applauded a Navy decision to buy another Arleigh Burke class destroyer with money it saves in a streamlining effort. Collins described the move as a positive step toward her ultimate goal of increasing the Navy’s procurement rate of destroyers to three per year. Bath Iron Works is the lead shipyard in the DDG-51 Arleigh Burke class, and will be in the running along with Mississippi-based competitor Ingalls shipyard to build the additional...

In a high-threat environment, the Navy’s AEGIS vessels have a problem. They cannot be re-armed. AEGIS cruisers have 122 vertical launch system (VLS) cells, while the destroyers have 96. Each magazine is “multi-use,” composed of specialized land attack and self-defense weapons, so a desired missile may not be available in sufficient numbers. Complicating matters, AEGIS vessels sometimes sail with a partially-filled magazines, and missile reliability rates aren’t often anywhere near 100%. CSBA expert Jan Van Tol, in his recent AirSea Battle monograph ,is the latest to highlight this vulnerability, and pointedly suggests that, given the way high-end warfare is likely...

BATH, Maine – Cruising through the darkness in rough seas, the USS Ross encountered a rogue wave that smashed into the destroyer's bow, sending a shudder along the entire ship that knocked sleeping crew out of their bunks and damaged the sonar housing. As alarms sounded, sleepy sailors scrambled to shore up the leak. "We cracked the hull and kept on going like it was nothing,"...