Quote:
Originally Posted by JA Boomer
Fair enough...BUT you don't want to handicap the class. My first choice would be an AEGIS system with SPY-F with Standard/ESSM missiles.
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Hey, It would be great if each frigate could have a full AEGIS installation, 16-inch guns and a flight of SuperHornets, but it is not going to happen
In order to afford the number of frigates they are going to need, the US is going to have to build these ships to a cost. Also, why not build the ships to bring capabillities to the table that the Burke's do not? I am not arguing against an organic air-defense capabillity just cautioning against trying to turn the ships into mini-air-warfare destroyers. Heck, we will have something like 84 of those when all is said and done. I very much see these new Frigate as modern-Perry equivalents rather than mini-Burkes.
To be fair, I do not know what having SPY-F and a MK41 VLS would add to the cost of a frigate-sized ship. If you could build such a ship for say 300million great, but I suspect it would not be possible.
Using the NSC hull as a base would have some advantages. The Coast Guard requirement for new cutters is roughly 30 ships. The US Navy req for LCS was around 50. There would have to be economies of scale to building a class of 80 ships (even if the Navy version was fitted out differently than the Coast Guard version).
I guess I am OK with limited organic armament provided there are weight provisions to add additional armaments during the life of the ship (something the LCS, with it's short legs and limited weight-carry capacity lacked).