STRATEGYTALK: Warships With Problems. It seems a lot of new warships have problems, including design, mechanical and crew training issues. In this latest StrategyTalk podcast StrateyPage editor James F. Dunnigan and associate editor Dr. A. A. (Al) Nofi discuss the problems many countries are having with their new warships. They also mention some successes. Dr. Nofi is one of America’s top naval historians. He also worked for several years as the Center for Naval Analyses. The link goes to the youtube version. If you like what you hear, please subscribe. (The webmaster tells me we need 120 more youtube podcast subscribers.) If you want an MP3 download, go here.

StrategyPage’s archives are packed with updates on navies and warships from around the world. One of the U.S. Navy’s most troubled warships is the Littoral Combat Ship (LCS). Its nickname says it all: Little Crappy Ships. Here’s a Surface Forces update from 2016 that includes commentary on the LCS concept, history and flaws. Understand the USN deploy two different variants (types) of Littoral Combat Ships. Here’s a photo of the USS Fort Worth, a Freedom-variant. Note the ship has a standard monohull. This next photo shows the USS Gabrielle Giffords, an Independence-variant LCS. This type has a trimaran hull.