GD unaffected by navy stop-work order

The USA shipbuilder Bath Iron Works (BIW), a General Dynamics? (GD) subsidiary, is not affected by a stop-work order on the Navy’s program to build a new generation of fast manoeuvrable warships. The Navy ordered defence contractor Lockheed Martin to stop work for three months on its second ship in the Littoral Combat Ship (LCS) program because it’s running over budget.

Lockheed Martin’s first ship, which is 70% complete, is being built at Wisconsin’s Marinette Marine Corp. The stop-work order applies to Lockeed Martin’s second ship, which is under construction at Louisiana’s Bollinger Shipyards Inc.

GD is building its own LCS that reflects an entirely different design at Alabama’s Austal USA shipyard and BIW is lead contractor on that project.

The first ship that’s being built at Marinette is now projected to cost as much as $410 million, compared with initial projections of $234 million, said Howard A. Rubel, an analyst at Jefferies & Co. The Navy took action, Rubel said, to “signify its displeasure with the substantial cost overrun on the program.”

The ship that’s being built at the Austal shipyard in Mobile, Ala., is about 50% complete, said BIW spokesman Jim DeMartini. The Austal ship is due to be launched later this year, he said.

The Navy could choose the Lockheed Martin or the General Dynamics design, or it could choose to build both designs. The Navy wants to build 55 of the ships, which are a big part of the Navy’s overall goal of a 313-ship fleet.