Navy CG(X) Cruiser Program: Background, Oversight Issues, and Options for Congress

Abstract

The Navy in recent years has been developing technologies and studying design options for a planned new cruiser called the CG(X). The Navy has wanted to procure CG(X)s as replacements for its 22 Ticonderoga (CG-47) class Aegis cruisers, which are projected to reach their retirement age of 35 years between 2021 and 2029. The Navy has wanted the CG(X) to be a highly capable ship, particularly in the areas of anti-air warfare (AAW) and ballistic missile defense (BMD). The Navy's FY2009 budget called for procuring the first CG(X) in FY2011. Beginning in late- 2008, however, it was reported that the Navy had decided to defer the procurement of the first CG(X) by several years, to about FY2017. Consistent with these press reports, on April 6, 2009, Secretary of Defense Robert Gates announced--as part of a series of decisions concerning the Department of Defense's (DOD's) proposed FY2010 defense budget--a decision to "delay the CG-X next generation cruiser program to revisit both the requirements and acquisition strategy" for the program. The Navy's proposed FY2010 budget deferred procurement of the first CG(X) beyond FY2015 and requested $340 million in research and development funding for the CG(X) program. Section 1012 of the FY2008 defense authorization act (H.R. 4986/P.L. 110-181 of January 28, 2008) makes it U.S. policy to construct the major combatant ships of the Navy, including the CG(X), with integrated nuclear power systems, unless the Secretary of Defense submits a notification to Congress that the inclusion of an integrated nuclear power system is not in the national interest. The Navy has studied nuclear power as a design option for the CG(X), but has not yet announced whether it would prefer to build the CG(X) as a nuclear-powered ship.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Nov 20, 2009
Accession Number
ADA511443

Entities

People

  • Ronald O'Rourke

Organizations

  • Library of Congress

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Energy and Power Technologies
  • Ground and Sea Platforms
  • Space
  • Weapons Technologies

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Aircraft Carriers
  • Boats
  • Directed Energy Weapons
  • Engineers
  • Ford-Class
  • Littoral Combat Ships
  • Military Organizations
  • Naval Operations
  • Naval Vessels (Combatant)
  • Naval Warfare
  • Navy
  • Nuclear Powered Ships
  • Nuclear Powered Submarines
  • Nuclear Propulsion
  • Propulsion Systems
  • Submarines
  • United States

Readers

  • Government and Public Administration Law.
  • Naval Architecture and Marine Engineering.
  • Naval Mine Countermeasure Systems Development.