Repairs hit sea time for US warships, could affect readiness: report
- Review of 151 vessels reveals ‘persistent and worsening challenges’ as maritime rivalry with China steps up
- Government Accountability Office finds increasing maintenance delays and other problems across 10 classes of ships
The assessment was part of a report by the US Government Accountability Office (GAO), which reviewed 151 ships from 10 classes and found “persistent and worsening challenges” between the 2011 and 2021 financial years.
These included fewer steaming hours, an increase in both casualty reports and maintenance delays, as well as a rise in maintenance cannibalisation – where working parts are removed and reused elsewhere because of parts shortages.
Diana Maurer, a director of the GAO’s defence capabilities and management team overseeing defence sustainment and readiness issues, said the challenges would “have an impact on [the navy’s] overall readiness”.
“First and foremost, when ships require more time than planned for maintenance, that means less time for training and less time for operational missions. So those things have an impact on overall readiness,” said Maurer, during a podcast produced by GAO.
“Secondly, it means that the navy is spending more money on maintaining its ships, money that could potentially be used for other things.”