RogerRanger
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For me its clear that the US navy isn't fit for purpose anymore after 30 years of mistaken ship design and not evolving from the cold war.
If the Americans want to turn this around they would need a bold strategy, one could say a crazy strategy.
The problem for the Americans is the carriers, submarines and destroyers, all highly complex, very expensive and taking up much of the US ship building capacity.
So I would put the entire US navy up for sale to US allies and partners around the world. Set up a reserve fleet improvement program. Hope to raise around 100 billion dollars for the rebuild program of the US strategic fleet.
Aim to build 16 fleet carriers, each able to operation 55 aircraft. 24 AAW cruisers with 200 VLS and extended range missiles. 12 AAW destroyers 120 VLS. 48 ASW/AAW destroyers 90 VLS. 100 ASW escort frigates 40 VLS. 70 SSN. 12 SSBN. Price point for the carriers being 5 billion each, cruisers 2 billion, AAW destroyers 1.3 billion, ASW/AAW destroyers 1 billion, escort frigates 400 million, SSN's 800 million. SSBN 3 billion. 329,600,000,000 take 100 billion that's 229.6 billion over an 8 year build program. Or 28.7 billion a year. That's a 282 ship navy.
This serves a number of purposes, first to arm US allies. Imagine the Australians with 6 AB destroyers or Canada with 4 Virginia class subs. Or Indian with a Nimitz class carrier. Second totally restructure how the US builds ships, set a price point and build what you can get for that price point. Build to build the ships, not to maintain a program for the politicians and military industrial complex, driving up program costs. Push the US build program to its full capacity year on year, bringing ship building back to the US from China, Korea and Japan.
These would be the key strategic advantages of this strategy.
Set up a build and export program for the US navy, by which you build ships to export them them to other nations, supplementing the US costs. This would be made up of brown water navy assets. General frigate, ASW corvette, stealth corvette, missile boat, SSK, minesweeper, general patrol boat, light carrier. Of which the US would build and operate a certain number of each ship class within the repurposed Caribbean fleet. If the US did this it would regain domination over the Caribbean sea, have an export market for its allied and partners, the strategic numbers. Three things the US hasn't had for at least 20 years.
Its clear that since the end of the cold war the US build program has be misguided and been a racket, without any strategic purpose or tactical doctrine in mind. Meanwhile the Chinese have a strategic purpose and tactical doctrine. Its better for the US to totally cut its loses with its current disaster of a fleet and rebuild. Same thing the British should have done before WW2.
If the Americans want to turn this around they would need a bold strategy, one could say a crazy strategy.
The problem for the Americans is the carriers, submarines and destroyers, all highly complex, very expensive and taking up much of the US ship building capacity.
So I would put the entire US navy up for sale to US allies and partners around the world. Set up a reserve fleet improvement program. Hope to raise around 100 billion dollars for the rebuild program of the US strategic fleet.
Aim to build 16 fleet carriers, each able to operation 55 aircraft. 24 AAW cruisers with 200 VLS and extended range missiles. 12 AAW destroyers 120 VLS. 48 ASW/AAW destroyers 90 VLS. 100 ASW escort frigates 40 VLS. 70 SSN. 12 SSBN. Price point for the carriers being 5 billion each, cruisers 2 billion, AAW destroyers 1.3 billion, ASW/AAW destroyers 1 billion, escort frigates 400 million, SSN's 800 million. SSBN 3 billion. 329,600,000,000 take 100 billion that's 229.6 billion over an 8 year build program. Or 28.7 billion a year. That's a 282 ship navy.
This serves a number of purposes, first to arm US allies. Imagine the Australians with 6 AB destroyers or Canada with 4 Virginia class subs. Or Indian with a Nimitz class carrier. Second totally restructure how the US builds ships, set a price point and build what you can get for that price point. Build to build the ships, not to maintain a program for the politicians and military industrial complex, driving up program costs. Push the US build program to its full capacity year on year, bringing ship building back to the US from China, Korea and Japan.
These would be the key strategic advantages of this strategy.
Set up a build and export program for the US navy, by which you build ships to export them them to other nations, supplementing the US costs. This would be made up of brown water navy assets. General frigate, ASW corvette, stealth corvette, missile boat, SSK, minesweeper, general patrol boat, light carrier. Of which the US would build and operate a certain number of each ship class within the repurposed Caribbean fleet. If the US did this it would regain domination over the Caribbean sea, have an export market for its allied and partners, the strategic numbers. Three things the US hasn't had for at least 20 years.
Its clear that since the end of the cold war the US build program has be misguided and been a racket, without any strategic purpose or tactical doctrine in mind. Meanwhile the Chinese have a strategic purpose and tactical doctrine. Its better for the US to totally cut its loses with its current disaster of a fleet and rebuild. Same thing the British should have done before WW2.
