A recent spate of problems with the U.S. Navy’s Littoral Combat Ships (LCS) prompted Vice Adm. Tom Rowden, commander of Naval Surface Forces, to order all LCS crews to review procedures and standards for their engineering departments, the Navy announced late Sept. 5.
“Due to the ongoing challenges” with LCS, “I ordered an engineering stand down for LCS squadrons and the crews that fall under their command,” Rowden said in a news release. The stand down, which was completed Aug. 31, “allowed for time to review, evaluate and renew our commitment to ensuring our crews are fully prepared to operate these ships safely.”
Rowden said he also has directed LCS sailors involved in shipboard engineering to undergo retraining over the next 30 days. In addition, he has asked the commander of the Surface Warfare Office School (SWOS) in Newport, R.I., to review LCS engineering training programs.
The most recent LCS problem arose in late August, when the USS Coronado (LCS-4) experienced a “casualty” to one its “flexible couplings assemblies,” the Navy said, without elaborating. The Coronado, which was deploying to the western Pacific at the time, returned to Pearl Harbor for further evaluation and repairs.
Three other LCSs — the USS Freedom (LCS-1), USS Fort Worth (LCS-3).and USS Milwaukee (LCS-5) — have had propulsion system problems since December. The Navy has accepted delivery of eight of the 28 LCSs it plans to buy.