I had previously posted about the sudden paradigm shift in Navy destroyer acquisition, and now that the dust has settled somewhat more information has come out concerning the rapid change in policy.
The sudden reversal from a decade long shipbuilding policy left heads turning on Capital Hill, forcing the Navy to provide some information as to their reasoning. The immediate reasons for canceling further production of the Zumwalt class involved basic bookkeeping - the ships are estimated to cost between $3.3 to $5 billion, taking up a large chunk of Navy budget. By eliminating those ships, they would be able to build about 8 more Burke class vessels, helping the Navy create the 313 ship force they so desire. Naval personnel also mentioned that the Zumwalts would not be able to provide ballistic missile defense, a capability that the Navy has determined that all new destroyers need.
Apparently the dual band radar being used in the Zumwalts cannot guide the Standard Missile family of surface to air missiles which are, as the name implies, standardized across the fleet. Sources have also alluded to the emerging threat of a Chinese super missile, which would fire like a ballistic missile and have terminal guidance similar to a guided missile. It was this threat that the Zumwalts were not configure to counter. The contracting partners for the Zumwalt design, namely Raytheon, are as in the dark about the situation as everyone else is. Raytheon claims that the system uses the same link for the SM-2 missile as other Naval systems it has designed, and therefore should work, but the Navy has refused further comment. If this Chinese missile threat does exist, the Navy may also want to rethink it's reliance on carrier task forces.
As all of this was finally starting to settle by mid-August, the Navy came back fighting for a third Zumwalt again, as well as for the eight additional Burkes, making a complete about-face from the previous, well, about-face. The Navy also made assurances that the third ship would be built at BIW in Maine. Negotiations with Congress were on-going, but everyone was a little shaky as per the recent shake up from the Navy; no one listens to the boy who cries wolf. Apparently the Defense Department had directed the Navy to go back and fight for the third ship, which they did not necessarily want. By September, the Navy was just hoping that it would get funding for another destroyer this year, no matter the class.
The newest headache in the affair comes from the Northrop Grumman yard in Mississippi, as the Defense Department has claimed that there are doubts that the composite superstructure scheduled to be constructed there will be able to seal each of the panels and components together adequately. Yet again this is news to the contractor as well the Navy. Both have worked together on test structures, which have been meeting the design requirements originally posted.
From the looks of things, I would believe that yet another intelligence failure must have occurred somewhere in the DoD chain of command; a panic must of ensued when reports of the Chinese missile were released, much as there was a fear of technological inferiority when the Soviets released information on the Alfa class submarines stating that they could outperform not only our current submarines, but also their torpedoes. A very sudden re-evaluation occurred, causing the ax to fall prematurely on the neck of the Zumwalt clas