More on the Frigate SLEP Feasibility Discussion

I heard from LT Clayton Doss this morning, who kindly encouraged me to dig a bit deeper into the hearing in the Senate Armed Services Committee on June 16th with Vice Admiral Bernard J. McCullough, III, USN and the Honorable Sean J. Stackley. His point was the article was only partial, and did not look at the entire issue.

He is right. I quickly read through the Navy Times article by Phillip Ewing, and the Navy Times article omitted a key detail that changes the entire discussion.

You can watch the entire hearing on the Senate Armed services website here.

In response to a question from Sen. Martinez, VADM McCullough said we have already conducted a mid-life upgrade to the FFGs, which are expected to retire after 30 years. He noted the ships are experiencing hull thinning that was not anticipated, and observed weight limitations that prevent placing equipment high on the platform. He noted that the SH-60B are retiring in 2017, and the frigates have not been updated for the Romeos. He noted significant investment would be required to add an additional 10 years of service life, and gave several other details explaining in detail why the Navy does not see a return on investment in a SLEP program.

VADM McCullough also talked about the RAN FFG SLEP efforts and pointed out their program is $300 million and four years behind schedule. To see his comments, watch the video from about 51:00 minutes to about 56:00 minutes.

As I look at the frigates, the advocates are starting to remind me of the Iowa BB advocates that simply loved the platform and never wanted it to go away. The Navy is looking at what the options are, comparing those options to a new LCS at a fixed cost contract of $460 million, and is making a fiscally responsible decision.

I think VADM McCullough is dominating the high ground on this issue. In any "value" discussion at a time of fiscal restraint, particularly when we know static budgets will restrict opportunities to advance our naval technology (something the LCS DOES do), it looks like the responsible decision is to retire the frigates.

VADM McCullough is making fiscally responsible decisions with the hand the Navy is holding. I see the complaints as rooted in one of two things: dislike for the LCS and/or loyalty to the Perry frigates.