*There's a mass gathering of incompetent people in
Marinette, WI this week, trying to work out what to do about [Lockheed Martin's] LCS 1, which was launched in September 2006 but which will now probably not be delivered before the spring of 2009, if then and if ever. *
That's maritime blogger Tim Colton chiming in on the Navy's resuscitated Littoral Combat Ship program, which derailed last year when the planned $220-million ships, built by Lockheed and rival General Dynamics, came in at more than $400 million apiece. Ships three and four were canceled and will be rebid. Now just numbers one and two are under construction. Fifty-five of the inshore fighters are planned.
Endless test failures, mostly involving this simple ship's ludicrously complicated engineering plant.
Where will it all end? Is it time to recognize that this design just doesn't work, and terminate the program? Then, let's fire everyone in PMS
501 [the program office -- ed.] and sue Lockheed Martin, the world's most incompetent shipbuilding contractor. There was a reason that the old Lockheed got out of shipbuilding -- they were no good at it -- but apparently nobody now remembers that.
But Colton's all wrong, according to the Navy, as reported by Defense News:
"We're on track for trials beginning in May. We're on track for a summer 2008 delivery," said Diana Massing, a spokeswoman for Lockheed
Martin. "LCS 1 starts builder's trials next month and is scheduled to deliver in August 2008," declared Lt. Cmdr. John
Schofield, a Navy spokesman.
(Photo: Navy)
