US Navy's new $166B submarine fleet is hobbled by faulty parts wearing out DECADES earlier than expected

Daily Mail ^

[algore]

The US Navy's new $166billion fleet of Virginia-class submarines is being hampered by infrastructure issues and defective parts that are breaking down decades earlier than expected.

The Navy is facing 'significant delays' in submarine maintenance that will stunt its ability to keep up with its workload for the next 25 years, according to a recent report from the Congressional Budget Office.

The CBO report found that the Navy faces a drastic shortage of parts and has too often relied on a solution called 'cannibalization.'

In other words, when a submarine is missing a part, the Navy typically swaps it with another submarine.

While an effective means of getting a submarine working again, the CBO reported that it requires extra steps and increases the Navy's workload.

'There is also a risk that a part might be damaged during the extra steps,' the CBO reported.

Bryan Clark, a former special assistant to the chief of naval operations, told Bloomberg that 'the Navy may have been too slow to act on indications that some components were wearing out faster.'

Some parts were supposed to last 33 years, according to engineering analysis and testing, but faced 'degradation' and 'corrosion caused by complex galvanic interactions' such as friction between parts 'that had not been predicted in some operating environments,' the Navy said in a statement.

The subs were built by Falls Church, Virginia-based General Dynamics Corp. and Huntington Ingalls Industries Inc.

Liz Power, a spokesperson for General Dynamics, said in an email to Bloomberg: 'We work closely with the Navy to help it address any unanticipated issues with parts, to include initiatives to design improvements that can be applied to future boats.'

[algore]

Who could have predicted we might not be able to get spare parts from China due to a Global Pandemic ?

Since 2013 ?

Blame Galvanic Covid Friction

I wonder how the Windows for Warships program is going, Yes that is Real, and yes there are still some support issues.

[Darksheare]

Just wait until all the built in backdoors on the chips we sourced from china get used en masse.

[Seruzawa]

Corruption between contractors and procurement bureaucrats and Admirals. Whodathunk?

[ProtectOurFreedom]

What do seaworthy ships have to do with readiness? All that matters is PC and trannies and surgery and intersectionalism and other cool woke stuff. Aye, aye, sir!

[sauropod]

And that’s why the Navy is the Service with the biggest chunk of the DoD budget.

By far.

[alloysteel]

All according to plan. The Chameleon Harris/Joe Stolen regime self-sabotages our military capabilities, making it
“inadvisable” to do patrols of international waters, one of the vital functions of any “blue-water” navy.

And thus, one of the great advantages the US once had, slips away.

[Pollard]

The CBO report found that the Navy faces a drastic shortage of parts and has too often relied on a solution called 'cannibalization.'

I've got a 2001 F150 and a 1999 I bought for parts. Nice to know I'm up to mil standards. LOL

[Starstruck]

First part of contract should be to build something that lasts. The second part of the contract should be replacement parts at an agreeable price and readily available.

[Lonesome in Massachussets]

Defense articles are not allowed to have Chinese parts without a waiver. If a waiver is granted, at the time of acquisition, lifetime spares have to be delivered with the part. Obviously, lifetime spares are based on estimates of consumption, or useful life. Those estimates can often be 5X high or 5X low. Useful life is not a guarantee, it is a good-faith engineering estimate.

One example of a part is LED displays. There was a time when the only source of LED displays was China. Programs incorporating them had to buy lots of spares.

[MinorityRepublican]

Let’s ignore nukes for a minute. Chinese boats can probably take out the Pacific fleet right now. Russian MIGs might be able to contest American F22s, we only have 185 of them. Russia is currently building MIG-41 so it’ll be interesting to see how advanced it is.

[G Larry]

I tried for decades to get the "parts verification process" revised.

Too much emphasis on cost savings via inspection and analysis (and "similarity").

Not enough oh Demonstration and Test.

[phormer phrog phlyer]

All the services have perverted procurement systems, the Navy’s is particularly so. Most of their big ticket projects are over promised under delivered, significantly delayed and way way overpriced.

[the OlLine Rebel]

Not clear here, but interesting no mention of Electric Boat.

[cuz1961]

it is a good-faith engineering estimate.//

I’ll buy the “engineering estimate”

The “ good faith”

is only as good as
academia and affirmative action
that gave us our engineers.

[the_individual2014]

I wonder if Adm Rickover is turning in his grave about now.

[the OlLine Rebel]

I want to be on that ship.

[lepton]

At least part of this appears to be a third part - which is someone else’s innocuous stuff causing the breakdown of existing stuff - neither of which would break down if not put together.

[algore]

I have a Parker Space pen, Lots of money was spent developing that. The Russians used a mechanical pencil which worked just fine Sometimes it is better to use the KISS principle

[Tallguy]

Aren’t these boats designed for only a 20-year lifespan. That’s the design-life of the reactor core.

“Decades early” for a boat with a 2-decade life?

[CivilWarBrewing]

ADVERTISING READINESS DEFICIENCIES is downright SUICIDAL.