U.S. Navy Suffering from Inability to Deploy Ships due to Aging Fleet


The United States Military may be heralded as one of the most advanced in the world, but behind the façade lies a naval fleet that is a shadow of its former self.

The U.S. Navy is suffering from an inability to deploy ships to key international conflict zones due to rising maintenance issues on an aging fleet, that is increasingly being sidelined for lengthy repairs, according to military experts and a new government investigation.

Heavy demand on the Navy’s fleet during the pa st decade has compromised the operational conditions of many ships, forcing military leaders to sideline these vessels for lengthy repairs that experts say will severely limit the Navy’s ability to respond to emerging threats in the Persian Gulf and Asia-Pacific regions.

Critical maintenance was completed on time on just 11 percent of the Navy’s aircraft carriers in 2015, causing these vessels to lose around 181 deployment days, according to the latest projections by the Government Accountability Office.

The situation is worse for surface combatant ships. Maintenance on these vessels was completed on time in just 28 percent of cases, causing the fleet to lose around 391 total deployment days, according to the GAO latest report.

Military experts told the Washington Free Beacon that the “Navy crunch” is not expected to end anytime soon, raising questions about the United States’ ability to respond on multiple fronts in key conflict zones.

Why are so few ships being properly maintained? Critics say that the crumbling of the military under Obama’s watch is no accident. Regardless of the reason, it’s delivered us a force that may be incapable of fully defending the country should a major war break out.

Source: The Washington Free Beacon

 

 



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