(Amerika) Streitkräfte der USA - allg. Sammelthread

[revan]

<!-- m --><a class="postlink" href="http://www.navytimes.com/news/2010/07/navy_aegis_070510w/">http://www.navytimes.com/news/2010/07/n ... s_070510w/</a><!-- m -->

Study says Aegis radar systems on the decline

The advanced radar systems aboard cruisers and destroyers are in their worst shape ever, according to an independent probe into Navy readiness, raising questions about the surface fleet’s ability to take on its high-profile new mission next year defending Europe from ballistic missiles.

Poor training, impenetrable bureaucracy and cultural resignation have caused a spike in the number of technical problems and a dip in the operational performance of the Aegis system, considered the crown jewel of the U.S. surface force, according to members of a “fleet review panel” tasked with assessing the surface fleet. And if that’s the situation with Aegis — which includes warships’ iconic, hexagonal SPY-1 radar arrays — the panel wondered what that could mean for other, lower-profile equipment.

“The SPY radar has historically been the best supported system in the surface Navy, and coincidentally supports one of the most critical Navy missions today: ballistic-missile defense. Yet SPY manpower, parts, training and performance are in decline.” If that’s the case, the report said, “it can be assumed that less important systems could well be in worse material condition.”

The panel was convened last September by Adm. John Harvey, head of Fleet Forces Command. The seven-member panel, which was chaired by retired Vice Adm. Phillip Balisle and included two serving admirals, produced a comprehensive indictment of Navy decision-making since the late 1990s: Admirals’ preoccupation with saving money, which prompted them to cut crews and “streamline” training and maintenance, led to a force that can’t keep ships in fighting shape.

The panel’s report was obtained by Navy Times. Navy officials in the Pentagon deferred questions about Aegis problems to Naval Sea Systems Command, which had not responded as of late last week.
The mighty Aegis has fallen

Although sailors and other observers have said before that cuts in crew sizes hurt readiness, Balisle’s report is the first to detail so many problems with Aegis, widely considered the world’s finest seagoing radar and combat system. It is so powerful and adaptable, in fact, the Obama administration is banking on it to become a permanent BMD shield for Europe next year, taking the place of ground-based sensors and weapons as U.S. warships make standing patrols in the Mediterranean.

But the report said Aegis, like the rest of the fleet, has become a victim of personnel cuts and the Navy’s labyrinthine internal organization. Casualty reports are up 41 percent from fiscal 2004, and those requiring technical assistance are up 45 percent. Over the same period, SPY radar performance, as observed by the Board of Inspection and Survey, has steadily worsened for cruisers and destroyers.

The report includes a sample of eight cruisers visited in the past several months by InSurv, whose scores on Aegis readiness form a distinct downward trend. The best performers were Cape St. George and Lake Erie, each of which got the maximum score of 1.0, which earns a rating of “satisfactory”; Cowpens and Chosin, with scores between 0.8 and 1.0, also earned “sat.” The worst were Monterey, Chancellorsville, San Jacinto and Normandy, all of which got grades that would have earned them ratings of “degraded” or “unsat.”

What’s causing it? The panel cited many reasons:

• There aren’t enough qualified people in the right jobs: 39 of 58 destroyers have a second class fire controlman in a first class SPY maintenance billet. Seven of 22 cruisers don’t even have enough sailors to meet the minimum number of authorized billets...............

Das ist einfach ein Skandal gut möglich, dass bei den Russen sogar die Technik in einen besseren Zustand ist. :roll: Was soll man sagen mahl wieder die Friedensdividende und Amerikanische Idiotie in exemplarischer Form.