Gates: Pentagon cuts could help free more money for Navy shipbuilding

[unhappycamper]

By Peter Frost, [e-mail] | 247-4744
4:20 p.m. EDT, August 9, 2010

Aggressive cost-cutting moves by the Pentagon could free up more money for the strapped Navy shipbuilding budget, Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates said today.

Gates announced that the Pentagon will seek immediate steps to start eliminating redundancy and duplication in the Defense Department, with those savings funneled back into the military's core activities.

As part of the cuts, Gates announced he was seeking to eliminate the Norfolk-based Joint Forces Command, a military command that employs more than 3,000 military and civilian workers in Hampton Roads, as well as more than 3,000 contractors.

~snip~

While the local yard has long-term contracts in place that all but guarantee a steady stream of nuclear-powered submarines and aircraft carriers over the next several decades, a new major sub-building program that Northrop may play a role in building has yet to be funded.

The Navy's desire to replace its ballistic-missile submarines, which analysts say most likely will be built in a partnership between Northrop and General Dynamics Electric Boat, will cost the Navy an estimated $7 billion per copy, an amount that would severely strain the sea service's relatively static shipbuilding budget.



unhappycamper comment: $5 billion dollar destroyers. $40 billion dollar aircraft carriers. $7 billion dollar submarines. Plus occupation costs.

At some point the money spigot will be turned off.

How many more city lights can we turn off to keep this money machine going? How many more roads can we unpave to achieve 'victory' in the Stan?

[fogonthelake]

1. sounds like just moving the deck chairs around.

[Bonhomme Richard]

2. I can tell you that the guys that are trying to keep those boats.....

operating have to scramble and scrape for every penny they get just to do routine maintenance. Maintenance for the Navy, and I assume the other services, is not sexy and is underfunded because the money is being suctioned off to pay for the big sexy projects. I feel their frustration because they still have to accomplish their mission......no excuses.

[unhappycamper]

3. From 11.30.2009:

This is seriously pathetic: American sailors cough up their own money to keep fleet going

[bigtree]

4. the reports that Gates is cutting against opposition are absurd

. . . and designed to make it look like he's going against the establishment instead of the predictable turf wars that he's igniting. In the end, there will be nothing more done than some minor house cleaning to make way for whatever Gates wants to spend our money on.