Naval Surface Fire Support: A Solution at Hand

Abstract

"The Navy has had no credible surface fire-support capability since it retired its last four Iowa class battleships in 1992." This statement, which was in a report to the Congressional Armed Services Committees in 1999, is echoed by military and congressional leaders alike. When the Marine Corps perfected amphibious operations, primarily amphibious assaults against hostile forces during World War II, the utilization of naval surface fire support (NSFS) was essential. Whether in preparation of the objective area or support of forces ashore, adequate NSFS was a significant factor in the planning and execution of past operations. Yet today, the Navy and Marine Corps no longer wield sufficient NSFS to support warfare in the littoral battlespace. The only current NSFS naval gun system employed by the Navy today is the Mark 45 5-inch gun. These guns have a firing rate of 20 rounds per minute and can fire out to 13 nautical miles. But 5-inch guns have a limited supply of ammunition that can quickly be depleted, they cannot eliminate large bunkers and armored vehicles, and their range is limited. The Navy has two plans to meet the NSFS naval gun requirements. The first is the Extended Range Guided Munition (ERGM). The second is the Advanced Gun System (AGS), The ERGM does not meet the Marine Corps' NSFS requirements, and the AGS will not be operational until 2015. There is only one NSFS system that can be fully operational within 2 years and meet the Marine Corps' near-term, mid-term, and far-term requirements at that time: the Iowa class battleship. These battleships, the answer to the problem, have been sitting idle along the coast of America, yet the Navy has been adamantly opposed to reactivating them for two primary reasons: cost and manpower. Nevertheless, reactivation of two Iowa class battleships is the only way to make the Marine Corps' NSFS requirements a reality in less than 2 years.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Feb 21, 2003
Accession Number
ADA520072

Entities

People

  • B. E. Mills

Organizations

  • Marine Corps War College

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Air Platforms
  • Ground and Sea Platforms
  • Weapons Technologies

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Ammunition
  • Amphibious Operations
  • Armored Vehicles
  • Battleships
  • Fire Support
  • Firing Rate
  • Guns
  • Marine Corps
  • Munitions
  • Naval Guns
  • Naval Operations
  • Navy
  • Ships
  • United States
  • Vehicles
  • War Colleges
  • Warfare

Readers

  • Maritime Combat Support and Expeditionary Logistics.
  • Naval Architecture and Marine Engineering.
  • Strategic Security Studies