November 12, 2013
Here are the programs that made the biggest news this past week:
LCS Freedom’s troubles continue — Yet another issue has cropped up with the first Littoral Combat Ship to set sail, the USS Freedom (LCS-1). This time, the problem was with the ship’s steering — a relatively simple problem to fix, but one that kept it from meeting a schedule commitment while visiting Singapore, according to Defense News. In a more positive development, Seapower Magazine reported that the LCS surface warfare mission package completed the second phase of its development testing.
Dutch say yes to F-35 — Successes are building for the F-35 program are building, at least on the international market. In the wake of South Korea’s recent reversal of its decision to buy fighters from Boeing, reports indicated last week that the Dutch parliament had ratified the government’s choice of the F-35 as the country’s next-generation fighter, ending what had been fierce debate on the issue in light of delays and cost increases for the F-35. Meanwhile, the Pentagon’s top buyer said the F-35 continues to be the department’s top priority, even in the face of budget cuts.
New life for MEADS — MEADS isn’t dead yet. Fresh off a successful test of the system, developer Lockheed Martin is going on an advertising blitz for the system only months after Congress made the move to end the program. Not only that, but InsideDefense reported last week that a recently signed MEADS pact between the United States, Germany, and Italy leaves the door open for later Pentagon purchases.
New carrier will be costly — The Navy doesn’t expect the price of the lead ship of the CVN-78 Ford class of carriers to drop below the $12.9 billion price tag, according to InsideDefense. The carrier’s rising costs have drawn Congress’ ire, and the service is hoping that the price won’t rise any further as it faces an already strained shipbuilding budget. The lead ship is currently 70 percent complete and was christened last week.