US Navy wastes $1.84Bln on failed cruiser upgrades: GAO report
2 Min Read
Since 2015, the Navy has spent $3.7 billion to modernize seven cruisers, aiming to extend their service life by five years.
-
In this photo from the U.S. Navy, the Ticonderoga-class guided-missile cruiser USS Leyte Gulf sails with the Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Truxtun in the Mediterranean Sea, on Tuesday, January 24, 2023. (AP)
The US Navy has wasted $1.84 billion on modernizing four Ticonderoga-class guided-missile cruisers that have now been retired, highlighting major inefficiencies in planning and execution, according to a report released on Tuesday by the US Government Accountability Office (GAO).
The GAO report revealed that since 2015, the Navy spent $3.7 billion to modernize seven cruisers, aiming to extend their service life by five years.
However, only three ships will complete modernization, and none will achieve the intended five-year service life extension. The other four ships were divested prior to deployment, resulting in significant financial waste.
"The Navy wasted $1.84 billion modernizing four cruisers that have now been divested prior to deploying," the report stated.
It criticized the Navy's poor planning for the modernization effort, which led to a high volume of unplanned work, cost overruns, and schedule delays.
Root causes and recommendations
The GAO pointed to the Navy's failure to effectively plan and execute the upgrades, noting that the modernization effort faced challenges such as unexpected repairs and quality control issues.
The watchdog agency outlined six recommendations to prevent similar issues in the future, including assessing the root causes of unplanned work, developing mitigation strategies to control costs and delays, incorporating these strategies into official policy for future modernization efforts, and reassessing the Navy's overall approach to quality assurance.
The Navy concurred with all six recommendations and pledged to address the identified shortcomings.
Background and Budget Constraints
The report also highlighted that in 2012 and 2013, the Navy initially proposed retiring several cruisers due to budget constraints.
Instead, Congress funded a phased modernization program to extend the service life of 11 Ticonderoga-class cruisers. However, the Navy's inconsistent execution undermined the program's goals.
To evaluate the effort, the GAO conducted on-site assessments of five cruisers undergoing modernization and interviewed over 100 Navy officers.
Read more: US nuclear submarine fleet declines as production slows, expert warns
