Posted on 05/24/2024 6:14:46 PM PDT by Mariner
The Department of Defense has awarded Fincantieri Marinette Marine a contract to build two U.S. Navy frigates, according to the daily Pentagon contract announcements.
The contract, valued at more than $1 billion, is for two Constellation-class Frigates, FFG 66 and FFG 67. The Navy selected the company to build the Constellation-class frigate in 2020.
“The team at Fincantieri Marine Group is committed to support the U.S. Navy, and the Constellation program will be the centerpiece of our portfolio for decades,” said Marco Galbiati, CEO of Ficantieri Marinette Marine, in a news release.
The company received the contract for the lead ship of the Constellation-Class in April 2020, and since then, the Navy has exercised five options for follow-on vessels. The lead ship, the future USS Constellation FFG 62, is under construction now at the newly revamped Wisconsin shipyard. With five ships waiting to be built and contract options for four more vessels.
(Excerpt) Read more at yahoo.com ...
Now.
It’s an imperfect analogy, but:
Nazi Germany emphasized quality over quantity. They built relatively few expensive tanks. Example: the Tiger tank.
The Soviet Union emphasized quantity over quality. They built many cheap tanks. Example: the T-34.
And we all know how that little dust-up ended.
They have about half the firepower of the Aegis DDG at 1/4 the cost.
And it puts more platforms at sea where the vast majority of jobs do not require a 10,000 ton DDG.
And we need 50 modern diesel subs too.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Constellation-class_frigate
Same wimpy gun as the LCSs. Should have gone with at least a 3” class gun instead of 57mm. These ships are almost as long and a bit wider than an Arleigh Burke class destroyer (marginally smaller displacement).
Let’s just call it an undergunned destroyer.
On, Wisconsin!
Beau was fishing for Walleye in that area Spring before last. They had TWO huge ships they were building at the time and they. were. awesome!
This is SUCH Good News for our state! Thanks for posting - been off for a day - storms, down internet, tree clean up, etc.
I agree with that. Maybe in two classes - a coastal version for the corners of the United States, and a larger one for force projection.
The ONLY use for a gun on an FFG or DDG is point defense against a large target...a very unlikely prospect.
And yeah, it’s even big for a DDG as I knew them. I rode the USS Benjamin Stoddert DDG-22....Adams class destroyer.
4,500 tons.
But those days are forever gone.
It takes a big ship to carry the MK-41 VLS and a helicopter. In addition to the 32 VLS tubes, these new Frigates carry 16 launch tubes for ASMs.
They are by no means “undergunned”.
They also have RAM and CIWS for defense...and a little baby AEGIS that networks with the big boys.
$1.0B for two ships. Think about that. Take out the government requirements and you could get 5 ships with 10 times the capabilities, under budget and delivered on schedule.
This will end up with hundreds of millions in cost overruns and delivered several years late and well behind in technology.
As they say, perfection is the enemy of the good.
There is such a thing as “Good Enough”! That’s the thing to strive for.
Hmm. Maybe I will apply for a job. I was negotiating with Bathworks but they didn’t want to pay much of anything.
A new Arleigh Burke DDG costs $2billion.
There’s not another ship in the world that comes close to its capabilities.
Expect similar effectiveness from these new FFGs.
> And yeah, it’s even big for a DDG as I knew them. <
I don’t know how true it is, but years ago I read that Congress passed a law stating what must be included in all future USN cruisers. The Navy did not want to be hamstrung by those requirements.
Therefore, no more cruisers. Such ships are now classified as destroyers instead.
38 years between active duty Navy, NAVAIR and DOD acquisition,DT&E, OT&E these systems can be done at a third the cost. Government is the problem. That’s reality.
Plus, what will they use against drones? Because by the time they are built, drones (air and sea) will definitely be a thing, even more than today.
Aren’t military ships supposed to be built in American shipyards?
Last time I checked, Wisconsin was part of the US...
Correct! Sorry was looking at the Italian name.
Profits to EU globalists - not good.
U.S.-based companies should get preferential treatment. There are plenty of American shipbuilding companies that aren’t owned by the European Union.
https://www.marineinsight.com/naval-architecture/major-u-s-shipyards/
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