Taylor: Squeeze another decade from the Tarawas
May 14th, 2010 | Congress Ships | Posted by Phil Ewing
The amphibious assault ship Peleliu would remain a fixture in San Diego for about another decade if a key lawmaker get his way. // MC3 Michael Barton / Navy
Mississippi Rep. Gene Taylor, chairman of the seapower subcommittee of the House Armed Services Committee, wants taxpayers to get their money’s worth for the final two Tarawa-class amphibs, Nassau and Peleliu. Even though the Navy current plans call for the ships to go away in fiscal years 2011 and 2013, respectively, Taylor wants them to serve for at much as 10 more years.
Will it happen? Maybe. Taylor and other members of Congress want to encourage the fleet to grow, and he has also called for a law that would stipulate the Navy add or keep more ships than it decommissions in a given year. The Navy, however, is probably not enthusiastic, especially on the two Tarawas; last week, its top acquisition official told a Senate subcommittee there’s no money in the budget plans right now to run Nassau and Peleliu past their decom dates.
Here’s another pressing question: What would it take to the keep the ships in fighting shape for another decade? They’re old. Anecdotally, Navy Times heard from Nassau crew members more than than any others when we asked about sailors needing to buy their own gear. And an announcement in February hinted darkly about what the crew of the Peleliu was going through as part of a visit by the Board of Inspection and Survey.
Have you served on either of these ships, or known people who have? What do you think about keeping them around for another 10 years — what would it take?
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Carrier Alternative Weekly « New Wars Says:
June 3rd, 2010 at 7:08 am[...] ships, in an attempt to breathe life support into the shrinking fleet. Story is from Phil Ewing at Scoop Deck: Mississippi Rep. Gene Taylor, chairman of the seapower subcommittee of the House Armed Services [...]