Check out the video of the littoral combat ship we sold someone getting hit by a single attack missile, to see what happens to "fighting ships" that weren't designed to get shot at from the beginning. It's pretty bad. I don't think we should be sending any of our military members into harms way without equipment designed for the job. That LCS was supposedly in "safe" waters but of course the bad guys got ahold of an attack missile and popped it.
Agreed Vulcan, I think that was the ship Eagl was thinking. Regardless, Eagl's point stands, and the LCS ship is in no way up to taking the damage that past frigates could. Plus the LCS has an extremely small crew, which would make damage parties way smaller, and hurt damage control efforts immeasurably.
They sure don't build em like they used to - USS Thach (OHP Frigate) was sank in a recent sinkex, it took first 3 Harpoons, then 2 Hellfires, then a Maverick missile. Then another Harpoon. Then another pair of Hellfires. Then USN Hornets dropped a 2000lb bomb on it. Then a USAF B52 dropped a 500lb LGB on it. Then a bunch of gunfire. To finish it off, a MK48 torpedo.
The ship then stayed afloat for another 12 hours after all that.
Based on this, and the damage that the Stark and SB Roberts both took (Exocet and a Mine), and stayed afloat after damage control...I hope the next Frigate currently being considered by the USN is built to the standard of the OHP class Frigates, at least.
Regarding the USN diversifying from just large deck CVN CATOBAR carriers - I agree. Putting all the eggs in these baskets these days is questionable IMO. Buying and building a bunch more USS America type carriers, even putting catobar systems on them, isn't a bad option. Make them able to launch not just Stovl F35Bs but also the C model as well as Superhornets and the new stealth drone tanker. Having a bunch of these smaller decks with say 40 combined helo/aircraft aboard could have some advantages in the Pac theater. The only negative IMO is that they aren't nuclear powered, but that could be fixed/changed.
IMO the USN would benefit from a medium size fleet of AIP/DE submarines too, but that's another thread.
