U.S. Littoral Combat Ships not up to snuff

WASHINGTON, Sept. 1 (UPI) -- The U.S. Navy's new Littoral Combat Ships are plagued with design flaws that cast doubt on their "promised capability," a government agency said.

In a report titled "Navy's Ability to Overcome Challenges Facing the Littoral Combat Ship Will Determine Eventual Capabilities," the U.S. Government Accountability office said Tuesday t7he first two ships in the LCS program -- the USS Freedom and the USS Independence -- may not be able to hunt submarines, handle mines and launch boats in heavy seas as they were designed to do.

"To date, a full demonstration of this system remains incomplete. Navy simulations to date have identified risks in safely launching and recovering mission systems that experience pendulous motion during handling -- such as the remote multi-mission vehicles and unmanned surface vehicle systems," the report said.

Correcting the problems will raise the combined price tag of the two ships by $700 million, the GAO estimated.