Navy Ships: Lessons of Prior Programs May Reduce New Attack Submarine Cost Increases and Delays

Abstract

The Navy's plans to incorporate lessons learned from prior submarine programs, particularly the Seawolf SSN-21 program into the design and construction of the NSSN, a new class of nuclear-powered attack submarine were assessed. Several factors make the NSSN both an excellent opportunity and a challenge for the Navy to control acquisition costs and to improve the quality of the design and construction process. These factors are (1) a reduced antisubmarine warfare threat; (2) the U.S. defense budget, which has been more tightly constrained each year; and (3) the early stages of the NSSN acquisition cycle, which allow an agency to apply lessons of past programs to future programs. The NSSN's missions include battlegroup support, covert strike warfare, covert intelligence, special warfare, covert mine warfare, antisubmarine warfare, and antisurface warfare operating in both open ocean and littoral (coastal) areas.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Oct 20, 1994
Accession Number
ADA285905

Entities

Organizations

  • United States Government Accountability Office

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Ground and Sea Platforms

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Acquisition
  • Antisubmarine Warfare
  • Attack Submarines
  • Boats
  • Contracts
  • Department Of Defense
  • Governments
  • Lessons Learned
  • Military Acquisition
  • Navy
  • Procurement
  • Shipbuilding
  • Shipyards
  • Submarines
  • United States
  • Uss Seawolf
  • Warfare

Readers

  • Life Cycle Cost Analysis
  • Maritime and Naval Warfare Studies
  • Military History / Militaries and War Studies