The US Navy’s new frigates are heavier than planned and face problems again

The Constellation type frigates turned out to be 759 tons heavier than expected, which is about 13% over the original plan and caused significant delays in construction.

This was reported by The War Zone.

The construction of the lead ship, the USS Constellation, is already behind schedule, and it is expected to be delivered only in 2029 instead of the originally planned 2026.

The program is currently facing the fact that shipbuilders have begun procuring and cutting steel before final design acceptance, which has complicated the design and added weight due to design changes.

Apart from the shipbuilders themselves, the Pentagon still cannot decide what the new frigate should look like. Earlier it was reported that the target displacement of these frigates, at least initially, was 7291 tons.

Since the ships were developed on the basis of the Franco-Italian FREMM, they were modernized for use by the US Navy, and compatibility was supposed to be 85%. Due to constant changes in the design and the addition of new tasks, compatibility with the European type has dropped to less than 15%, and displacement has increased to about 8,000 tons.

In parallel with the ongoing problems and the postponement of certain stages of construction, the Pentagon plans to deal a more devastating blow – to abandon this type of frigate due to delays and increased costs.

To date, the Pentagon has spent more than $22 billion, and the cost of one ship is about $1.4 billion, with the price dropping to $1.1-1.2 billion for each subsequent ship.

It is worth noting that both the price of the project and the cost of one ship are questionable, as the new frigates will not have the same capabilities as Arleigh Burke destroyers, while their cost will be close to full-fledged destroyers.

Earlier, Militarnyi reported that the US industry is facing problems in the implementation of the US Navy’s large-scale program to build Constellation frigates.

Currently, the US program is three years behind schedule, which is a critical milestone in the expansion of the US Navy as part of the race to confront the Chinese fleet.

The Constellation frigates are being built at Fincantieri Marinette Marine, which laid down the lead frigate on April 12, 2024, and has not yet laid down the keel of the second frigate.