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Posted on 03/16/2012 7:09:51 PM PDT by U-238
Navy Secretary Ray Mabus confirmed Thursday that the cost overrun for the aircraft carrier USS Gerald R. Ford is projected to reach $1 billion, bringing the ship’s total cost to some $12 billion — but said it’s on track to be delivered on schedule.
The admission took place under questioning from Arizona Sen. John McCain, the ranking Republican on the Senate Armed Services Committee, who pointedly asked Mabus “what have you been doing on your watch” to control the costs on the new ship.
Mabus said the Navy’s deal with shipbuilder Huntington-Ingalls Industries is such that the government has “recovered its fee” for the project, and remainder of the money for the ship will only go to cover its costs. He also said the Navy expected to use the lessons learned on the first-in-class Ford to make sure the next ship, the USS John F. Kennedy, would not have the same types of cost problems.
Would the Navy need to ask Congress for permission to go above the cost cap on the ship? McCain asked. Not this year, Mabus said — but next year, the service will probably have to get special authorization to pay to continue building.
Navy officials had said before that their worst-case scenario for the Ford was a $1.1 billion cost overrun, and that’s what they had planned for internally. But they said they thought the previous public number, $800 million, was probably as bad as it would get, leaving some headroom in their plans for the medium term.
(Excerpt) Read more at dodbuzz.com ...
This GMM3 votes with the “OK for a ship...just not a CVN” crowd.
I’d be interested in Jim and Travis’s opinion...please.
I second that
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Here’s what really concerns me about the politically correct way that Naval ships are named. Fast forward 20 or 30 years when the Navy is ready to launch the USS Barack Obama!!
Let that image sink in for a moment. Think about the men and women who will have no choice about serving aboard that ship.
NOW is the time to force the Navy and the Congress to change the way that ships are named so that future servicemen and women won’t have that obligation fall on them!
I had blissfully forgotten what a cretin John Warner was until I read your post. Thanks and no thanks for the reminder. :-)
I sent this to U-238 and packrat35 and didn’t realize that I had inadvertently omitted you, shipmate. Please accept my apologies.
“Here’s what really concerns me about the politically correct way that Naval ships are named. Fast forward 20 or 30 years when the Navy is ready to launch the USS Barack Obama!!
Let that image sink in for a moment. Think about the men and women who will have no choice about serving aboard that ship.
NOW is the time to force the Navy and the Congress to change the way that ships are named so that future servicemen and women won’t have that obligation fall on them!”
The history of the naming of the FORD was this. Several Veterans Associations from various carriers were trying to get the naming including America the ship I was on years ago. Despite those veterans major efforts Senator Warner went to the SECNAV unknown to anyone and had it named after Gerald R Ford whom Warner was Nixon's SECNAV and appointed Director of the American Revolution Bicentennial Administration by Ford.
The Ford years as they related to the military were about like the Carter years. Ford's term was short enough few realize many of the Carter issues began in the Ford years and continued through the Carter years. Ford and Carter in many respects were more alike than different.
My beliefs as to what the Navy should be and should return too are not politically correct. I'll just say this much. When we had a man overboard The Old Man didn't care if you went to Muster in your skivies but that you wasted not a second doing so. As well I went to many a fire bell running down the passageway while dressing.
Do you REALLY think they will wait 20-30 years to name a ship after obama? I predict less than 10 years myself.
Sounds like we have the same unspoken, politically incorrect ideas. I think that political correctness has wusified all of the services to the extent that I would truly be surprised if we could fight a war like WWII, if it ever came to that.
As a former AT, I look at the technical side of the Navy's electronics equipment and the fact that, for PC board level repair, most has to be returned to the manufacturer. Can you imagine that happening during WWII??
"Sorry, Japan, our gun controller is down and we will have to wait a few days to get a replacement. We'll just have to resume the battle of Midway in about a week, is that ok? Thanks for understanding!"
Well, I based that on the averages but I do see your point. I think a lot will depend on whether or not we can force the issue of zero’s forged, fraudulent documentation.
If we can make that issue come alive and prove conclusively that he was never qualified to be POTUS, that changes the playing field. However, that’s a different topic for a different discussion.
Sticking to the current topic, I can see the potential for such a vessel, but some Dem is going to have to show us where the money is coming from to pay for it. We’re broke and getting broker every day that we allow the Congress to remain in session and the Fraud-in-Chief to issue Executive Orders that bypass the Congress.
Avionics and VAST were my two biggest headaches at sea LOL. When we hit warm climates the phone in the shop started ringing. We kept a guy TAD up in Operations though.
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