Coastal warships of the Freedom ("Freedom") and Independence ("Independence") types») The US Navy is proving too expensive, writes Defense News.
The American publication notes that the annual cost of operating one ship created under the Littoral Combat Ship (LCS) program costs $ 70 million, while the same figure for much larger and more powerful destroyers of the Arleigh Burke type is 81 million.
The US Navy proposes to solve the problem of Freedom and Independence by reducing the number of contractors engaged in ship maintenance and transferring their tasks to the fleet.
Defense News recalls that some LCS ships have problems with the power plant.
So, back in January, the publication wrote that the world's largest military-industrial company, the American Lockheed Martin, stopped supplying the US Navy with coastal warships of the Freedom type. According to the publication, the reason for the temporary suspension of deliveries was a design flaw in the transmission of the ship's propulsion system, in the development of which the German company Renk took part.
In October 2020, Defense News reported that the Detroit - class Freedom ship broke down while off the coast of South America due to engine problems.
The line of LCS ships designed to patrol the coastal zone, combat surface and underwater enemy forces, counter drones and reconnaissance, includes ships of the Freedom and Independence types. The first, which is a high-speed monohull ship, developed by Lockheed Martin. The second is a trimaran (three-hull ship), created by General Dynamics.
Ivan Potapov
