The U.S. Navy is facing significant challenges with its new Constellation-class frigates, originally based on the European FREMM design. The Government Accountability Office (GAO) has reported that the Navy botched the design oversight of the $22 billion project. The Constellation class now shares only 15% commonality with the original FREMM platform, leading to substantial weight increases, cost overruns, and delays. The lead vessel's cost was underestimated by 40%, and unplanned weight growth could reduce the frigates' top speeds. According to USNI News, the design commonality may be as low as 15%.
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#USNavy’s New Constellation Class Frigate Is A Mess Endless changes to the base FREMM design have contributed to major delays and now “unplanned weight growth” could lead to a loss of speed. The U.S. Navy's future Constellation class frigates could see their top speeds cut back… https://t.co/UUAFJzze4f
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The Navy said it would procure frigates based on a proven European model, but "Overall, the design commonality between the Constellation and FREMM may now be as low as 15 percent, according to USNI News." https://t.co/79lbDfGTxJ
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🇺🇸USN discovering (like the RAN) that massive rework of an existing warship design adds weight, cost and delays. USS Constellation class now share only 15% commonality with original FREMM platform and lead vessel cost underestimated by 40% https://t.co/BqgN31GWKs https://t.co/qMMeWQFygR