We’ll probably never know the real reason why the Navy
decided to terminate the Constellation program but one of the factors certainly
had to be the glacially slow pace of construction progress.
Constellation was laid down 12-Apr-2024 although, as with
most modern ships, construction of subassemblies had already begun. Now, Nov-2025, 19+ months later, the ship is
reportedly 12% complete.[1] That’s 12%
in 19+ months. That’s an average of 0.6%
construction progress per month. At that
rate, it would require 167 months (13.9 years!) to complete the construction
and even then, that would only be the basic hull. Fitting out would require many more months.
Fourteen years to partially build a frigate?
If you were SecNav, would you have continued this program?
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| Constellation Under Construction? |
https://news.usni.org/2025/11/25/navy-cancels-constellation-class-frigate-program-considering-new-small-surface-combatants
Not sure the point in gauging construction progress without a completed design. We also know they were reconfiguring the yard while finishing the last LCSs. The Synchrolift was to be complete in November 2023. Not sure when it was completed but we have 2 sources making it clear it was still not done by the beginning of February 2024. Now that the lift is complete and LCS are out of the yard, I am interested to see how many of the Saudi ships they can deliver in 2026. Original date for delivery of the final of those ships was to be the summer of next year. No sense in rushing the FFG until those are out of the way. At least assuming a BAU set of priorities.
ReplyDeleteYou almost seem to be defending the glacially slow progress of the Constellation prior to cancellation but I'm not sure. Tell me if I'm misinterpreting you.
ReplyDelete"Not sure the point in gauging construction progress without a completed design."
I'm not sure the point in STARTING construction without a design and yet that's exactly what we did.
If you're trying to excuse the slow progress due to yard equipment issues then the yard should never have been given a contract until they were fully capable.
"No sense in rushing the FFG"
The Navy has publicly stated that the Chinese will invade Taiwan within in the next few years (you can believe that or not but it's what they've claimed). The entire LCS and Zumwalt classes have been abject failures. You could not have more reasons to rush the FFG!
Not defending, but if we fail to accurately understand what's happening we will just flub it up a new way. If we see 4 Saudi ships launch in 2026 I think it might make the case that the building is less the problem than all of the other known problems. My bet is we see more holiday gotchas from SecNav no one is going to like initially. He wants faster. The example we have is LSM. Continue an existing FMS program to build an existing design and buy the data package for a follow on ship in the same role. In this case that would be a Saudi MMSC followed by the Taiwan light frigate using the Gibbs & Cox design which is basically a baby Connie.
DeletePerhaps it's on the archives and I missed it... but is there an explanation of the different kinds of contracts the Navy writes?? There seem to be so many, and yet, we seemingly always end up over upset and late on deliveries. I understand the Navys incessant change orders throw a wrench in the works... but isn't there a way to write contracts that could guarantee on time and on budget deliveries? Perhaps that's only possible with complete blueprints ahead of construction and no changes after it starts?? I see "incentive" in the types of contracts... and have no problem with giving an "early/under budget bonus but...
ReplyDeleteContracts have been mentioned many times but I've never done a post on them. It doesn't matter what type of contract; one way or another, there are always provisions for overruns and schedule slippages. Yes, asking a company to bid on a project that lacks a finalized design is insane and yet we do it routinely.
DeleteIf you think that the LCS and FFG programs are failures, wait until you see the DDG(X) program around 2026-2030's... (it will be the tomb of the US Navy)
ReplyDelete