{"id":42790,"date":"2020-02-12T20:20:46","date_gmt":"2020-02-12T20:20:46","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/uncategorized\/2020\/02\/12\/upgrading-the-first-four-littoral-combat-ships-not-worth-the-money-us-navy-says\/"},"modified":"2026-08-07T23:29:04","modified_gmt":"2026-08-07T23:29:04","slug":"upgrading-the-first-four-littoral-combat-ships-not-worth-the-money-us-navy-says","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/naval\/2020\/02\/12\/upgrading-the-first-four-littoral-combat-ships-not-worth-the-money-us-navy-says\/","title":{"rendered":"Fixing first four littoral combat ships not worth it, US Navy says"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

WASHINGTON \u2013 The cost of upgrading and repairing the first four littoral combat ships<\/a> is too high and it\u2019s better just to decommission them, the U.S. Navy\u2019s budget director said during the service\u2019s budget roll-out.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Following a string of engineering casualties, mishaps at seas and leadership problems, a 2016 reorganization of the littoral combat ship program designated the first four ships \u2013 Freedom, Independence, Fort Worth and Coronado \u2013 test vessels to be used to figure out how to fix the LCS fleet<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The hulls have accrued between six and 12 years of service but their usefulness as test vessels is waning and they\u2019re no longer worth a deeper financial investment, according to Rear Adm. Randy Crites<\/a>, the deputy assistant secretary of the Navy for budget.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThose four test ships were instrumental to wringing out the crewing, the maintenance and all the other things we needed to learn from them,\u201d Crites told reporters during the Feb. 10 budget roll out. \u201cBut they\u2019re not configured like the other LCS in the fleet, and they need significant upgrades. Everything from combat [systems], to structural, you name it. They\u2019re expensive to upgrade.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\t