http://www.strategypage.com/htmw/htsurf ... 10621.aspxCorrosion Cripples The LCS
June 21, 2011: Just as the U.S. Navy decides to put its new "Littoral Combat Ship" (LCS) into mass production, serious structural flaws have been discovered in both ships. The most serious problem is in the USS Independence, a radical trimaran design. It seems that a "dissimilar metals" situation arose when salt water, the aluminum hull and some other metals got into close proximity with each other, and extensive corrosion resulted. Aluminum hulls tend to corrode more than steel, but the problem became so bad with the USS Independence that, 18 months after entering service, it is headed for dry dock, corrosion repairs and design changes to eliminate the problem. The more conventional design, the monohull USS Freedom has developed cracks, as long as 15 cm (six inches).
http://cdrsalamander.blogspot.com/Monday, June 20, 2011
Can this be operationalized?
I think this press release from Austal gives us some hints on what the problem is with LCS-2. Read it all - but this is the question I have for you.
An integral part of any post-delivery support program for a high-performance, high-speed vessel such as the Independence-variant LCS is to provide a cadre of qualified maintainers who can help our Navy partners to deploy temporary sacrificial anodes every time the vessel is moored, and ensure that high-voltage maintenance equipment is properly grounded before use aboard ship. These are services that Austal’s skilled aluminum specialists, operating from six maintenance hubs in the Asia-Pacific, North America, South America, Europe and the Middle East, offer Austal customers every day.
Are they thinking about having Austal contractors at every port LCS-2 Class will pull in to, or are they just going to train Sailors to do it? Hopefully it is the latter and not the former. ... and this isn't being done now why?
What a china doll. Sad; I always liked the LCS-2 design over LCS-1 like I enjoy a bee sting over a kick in the groin - but if you need to give it a deep tissue massage and olive oil enema every time it enters port - ungh.