Feelings Over Facts

I don’t, generally, like to critically comment on other people’s opinion articles because they have no chance to respond.  Sometimes, however, an article so perfectly illustrates a point that I simply have to do it.  Such an article was just authored by Jerry Hendrix, a well known retired Navy Captain and prolific author of naval commentary.  The opinions presented in his article are so illustrative of what’s wrong with our officer corps – our so-called professional warriors – that I simply have to point them out.  Below is a list of statements lifted from the article (1) along with my observations about what’s wrong with them.

The general theme is that the Captain’s statements are mostly wishful thinking that is entirely unsupported by fact.

The selection of the FREMM design suggests that the U.S. government intends to remain engaged in the world.

This is a completely unsupported statement.  Nothing about the selection implies that US government intends to remain engaged in the world.  For starters, this was a Navy decision, not a US government decision and the choice was based on design criteria, not some nebulous global engagement criteria.  This is just some kind of feelings-based, wishful thinking.

Selecting the FREMM should actually make it easier for other U.S. manufacturers to sell their systems abroad.

Nothing about this selection automatically makes it easier for ‘other US manufacturers’ to sell abroad.  The US systems that were selected for installation on the frigate have already been on the international market for some time and have been installed on other classes of US ships.  Installation of these systems on an additional handful of US ships makes no difference one way or the other.

… by selecting Fincantieri, one of the largest shipbuilders in the world (with shipyards in seven countries), as the builder, the Navy will have the opportunity to benefit from an innovative design.

There has been nothing presented about this design that is innovative.  The ship hull is pretty typical of modern ship designs.  The innovative opportunities come from the equipment and systems that will be installed and they are all existing systems that are considered typical, not innovative.

U.S. shipbuilders will get the opportunity to learn design and construction “best practices” from Europe’s leading shipyards.

The ship is going to be built in the existing Wisconsin shipyard which builds the Freedom class LCS.  The Freedom class LCS construction effort has been a disappointment, to say the least, with excessively long delivery times and notably poor completeness and quality.  Unless Fincantieri opts to build a brand new shipyard with nothing but European standards and practices, there is nothing to be learned.  The shipyard and its ‘practices’ already exist and are in place and have performed poorly.

…by operating a design already in use in several other navies, the U.S. Navy will demonstrate its commitment to true interoperability.

This is utterly ridiculous.  Unless the Navy is going to allow foreign crews to take over and operate US frigates, this program does not in any way, shape, or form represent any interoperability.  In fact, the only resemblance of this frigate to the internationally existing FREMM frigates is the shape of the hull.  Every significant system and piece of equipment on the ship will be US Navy standard, existing systems and equipment.  There is not a thing about this that suggests interoperability.

By purchasing frigates of the FREMM design but equipping them with the latest in U.S. sensors and missiles, the U.S. Navy will maintain its technical standards while operating ships that are similar to those used by its operational partners.

To repeat, the only resemblance of this frigate to the internationally existing FREMM frigates is the shape of the hull.  Every significant system and piece of equipment on the ship will be US Navy standard, existing systems and equipment.  Nothing about it will be ‘similar to those used by its operational partners’.  This is pure marketing spin.

… because the new frigate is expected to cost $850 million or less, which is half the cost of the Navy’s next larger ship, the Arleigh Burke–class destroyer, it will be cheap enough to be purchased in larger numbers.

History suggests, with 100% certainty, that the frigate program will wind up being overbudget and by a significant amount.  This is pure wishful thinking.

… because the new design is smaller than the U.S. Navy’s larger cruisers and destroyers, future frigates will be able to make calls into smaller ports that have gone unvisited in recent years …

Can anyone name a single port that this ship can enter that a Burke could not?  Based on existing FREMM frigate specs, the draft of the frigate will be around 29 ft.  The Burke class draft is 30.5 ft.  How does a difference of 1.5 feet of draft open up new ports?  The FREMM length is 470 ft versus the Burke at 509 ft.  Again, how does that difference open up new ports?  This isn’t even wishful thinking – it’s just made up blather.

Port calls even in the era of COVID-19 remain vital no matter how many (or few) sailors actually depart the vessel.

So, a port call where no one leaves the ship is vital?  There has been zero historical evidence that port calls accomplish anything in the realm of international political relations and, in fact, there is much evidence that suggests that US ships sailing around the world aggravate international tensions.  Our presence in the E/S China Seas, for example, exacerbate relations with China, without a doubt.  Similarly, our presence anywhere near Iran or Russia contribute to international tensions.

Conclusion

These kinds of statements that are based on nothing but wishful thinking, feelings, and incorrect data are symptomatic of the type of officer being produced by the US Navy.  This failure or inability to recognize and acknowledge reality is why the Navy makes such consistently poor decisions.  Of course, the cynical among us might also note that Captain Hendrix’s current business position(s) are such that good relations with the Navy are important to his success and this article seems to be a public relations piece intended to promote his business ventures. 

By the way, did you notice what was missing from the Captain's discussion?  That's right … any mention of firepower.  The entire commentary was based on feelings about nebulous benefits.  That's another problem with our officer corps.  They're focused on everything but the one thing they should be focused on: combat capability.  It's a WARship, not an international symbol of a group hug.

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Jerry Hendrix is a vice president with the Telemus Group, a retired U.S. Navy Captain, and a consultant to the Defense Science Board.

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(1)National Review website, “FREMM Selection Signals U.S. Engagement”, Jerry Hendrix, 6-May-2020,

https://www.nationalreview.com/2020/05/us-navy-fremm-frigate-design-selection-signals-engagement/