Want a New Amphib? Well, We're Going to Get One
The Damen 100 design it is...
Last Friday, we got an answer to one of the questions we had after the CANX of the Constellation FFG: what next?
TWZ has a good summary of the hard data in the above video.
“Last month, with the concurrence of the Commandant [of the Marine Corps] and the Chief of Naval Operations, I approved the LSM design selection [of] the LST-100 landing ship transport, a roughly 4,000-ton ship with a range of more than 3,400 nautical miles that gives us the right balance of capability, affordability, and speed to field.”
The baseline LST-100 design is approximately 328 feet (100 meters) long, some 52.5 feet (16 meters) wide, and can reach a top speed of 15 knots, according to Damen.
It did not come out of nowhere, the Medium Landing Ship has been bouncing around for awhile as a way to make the USMC’s controversial Expeditionary Advanced Base Operations (EABO) happen.
So, we don’t really have a new class of ship to “replace” the cancelled Constellation-class. No, this was supposed to happen anyway.
The fact remains that we have failed, once again, to build a successful class of surface combatant since the Cold War. LCS, DDG-1000, CG(X), and now FFG-62—covering the spectrum of either a fraction of the utility they were hoped to be or never leaving the PPT.
Will we get DDG(X) right? We’ll see, but until then, we shall build Arleigh Burkes until the crack of doom.
The US Navy is not the first customer. The Dutch shipbuilders Damen had a proven design that the Australians picked a year ago as their “Landing Craft Heavy” to be built by Australian shipbuilder Austal in Western Australia. The Nigerians ordered theirs even earlier.
The Australians expect it to,
…be capable of carrying more than 500 tonnes of military vehicles and equipment – it is intended to carry six Abrams Tanks, 11 Redback Infantry Fighting Vehicles or 26 HIMARS – and will be fitted with self-defence weapons systems and Australian military communications.
Expect the US Navy’s version to be almost exactly the same.
The US Navy decommissioned its last LST, the USS Frederick (LST-1184) on October 5, 2002.
A Newport-class tank landing ship, she came in at 4,793 displacement, 159 meters in length, a top speed of 22 knots, and a ship’s company of 213 Sailors.
The prior LST class before Newport were the De Soto County-class at 3,560 tons, 136 meters in length, a top speed of 17.5 knots, and a ship’s company of 172 Sailors.
The Damen LST 100 comes in at 4,000 tons, 100 meters, and a top speed of 15 knots. It is not your father’s or grandfather’s LST…but it has one thing that no one else has—it is a mature design.
Yes, I know. So was the Franco-Italian FREMM that the Constellation-class came from, but perhaps we are a learning institution. Perhaps.
One thing I am VERY interested in hearing more about is the manning of the Damen 100. From their website, it has a crew of <checks notes> 18.
Yes, I have lots of questions about maintenance, watchstanding, endurance, etc…but let’s see what they have to say about the CONOPS for these ships.
…construction of the first ship expected to begin in 2026.
According to current planning, this schedule would allow the first vessel to enter service in 2029. The U.S. Navy and U.S. Marine Corps foresee a requirement for about 35 ships, and to accelerate progress and limit costs they do not intend to introduce major changes to Damen’s baseline design.
Adjustments are expected only where U.S. standard solutions are needed and to ensure compatibility with the equipment, armament and aircraft used by the U.S. Navy and Marine Corps.
…
At the time of the December announcement, an agreement was concluded for the purchase of design rights worth 3.3 million U.S. dollars. This will allow the Department of the Navy to select shipyards for each phase of the programme, covering construction, maintenance and later upgrades, with the aim of involving as many yards as possible.
The LSM class is intended to enable the efficient movement of Marine Corps combat groups across the Pacific between small islands and atolls. Their technical and tactical characteristics are expected to allow safe operation in areas exposed to potential adversary weapons, complementing the larger amphibious transport docks that form the core of expeditionary groups.
Again…the manning. These have to be USS as they will be going in harm’s way, will be armed, probably with a MK-46 30mm autocannon we also have on LPD-17 and DDG-1000 if I were a betting man. Could it be up-gunned to a OTO Melara 76 mm? Probably not…but one could dream.
Let’s round things up to 25 Sailors in ship’s company?
That ain’t a Commander command. That right there is a Lieutenant command with a LTjg XO and a couple of Ensigns with the rest enlisted personnel.
18? 25? Really? Huh.
With that speed, they need to be forward based. A bunch of LT commanded ships based in The Philippines. OK. Get a good JAG for the Commodore. Darwin? Probably not Singapore.
This will be interesting to see fleshed out.
Now, let’s talk about program risk mitigation with DDG(X)…
You continue to do a great job of highlighting the lack of coherence to the USN's vision of the future. Thank you. That lack of coherence highlights the fact that much of the senior leadership has an overinflated sense of their ability to see the future OR (and far more likely) is totally satisfied with the status quo because it benefits them personally. Which highlights the poor quality of the current cohort of USN senior leadership. IMO, YMMV
30 months on a Newport Class LST (RACINE LST-1191) 1987-1990 - Half the crew were Enginemen and Electricians, and a third were Deck. This ship will certainly be scaled down and more modern, but with 2 Propulsion Diesels, 2 SSDGs and sufficient Evaporator capability, that's going to more than eat up this over-optimistic manning. Add to it, a beaching evolution with an admin or combat onload/offload as a major stress-ex. This seems like merchant ship manning. I want it to succeed, but I'd like to see the ROC/POE.