[Llarry]

Another look at the forthcoming U.S. Navy missile frigates (FFGs) of the Constellation class: These ships will be about 70% as large as a missile destroyer and are projected to cost a billion dollars each, which is about half the cost of a DDG. They are based on an Italian/French design with some modifications and the first ship, the Constellation (FFG 62) has already begun construction. Fincantieri/Marinette Marine of Wisconsin has a contract to build the initial 10 ships of the class; a total of 20 FFGs is planned. There is some potential for further purchases.

The Navy plans to homeport the first 12 ships of the class in Everett, Washington as part of the Pacific Fleet. Interesting...

Austal USA, a U.S. subsidiary of an Australian company, has recently completed a new assembly building at their Alabama yard. Austal is known for their aluminum-hulled ships, such as littoral combat ships and expeditionary fast transports, but their Alabama yard is now capable of building steel-hulled ships as well. Whether a second shipyard might be needed is an open question, but Austal USA is clearly hoping for some more business.

The attached Congressional Research Service report on the new FFGs is a bit of a slog but raises some interesting points. For instance, the FFGs will be half the price of a DDG but have 33% of the vertical-launch missile tubes; how much would it cost to slightly lengthen the design and install 48 launch tubes? I also note that the speed of the FFG is slightly less than optimum when operating with a carrier strike group but fixing that would likely be a bit too expensive.