BREAKING: Dog Bites Man; LCS Breaks Down - film at 11

I'm not sure what signals the weak horse more, video of USN Sailors on their knees in front of the Farsi Island Chapter of the Bass Anglers Sportsman Society, or the fact that the self-propelled 57mm gun that we seem to want to make the cornerstone of our Fleet becomes another static display pierside.

Another validation of what we have been telling you for over a decade. This china-doll, "exquisitely" engineered, Little Crappy Ship is an albatross around our neck tactically, operationally, and strategically.

Via Chris Cavas;

For the second time in a month, a US Navy littoral combat ship (LCS) has been sidelined due to machinery problems.

The Fort Worth, a Freedom-class LCS that has been operating for more than a year in the western Pacific, “experienced a casualty to the ship’s combining gears during an in-port period in Singapore Jan. 12,” according to Lt. Cmdr. Matt Knight, a spokesman for the US Pacific Fleet.

So far, according to Knight, “the casualty appears to be caused by a failure to follow established procedures during maintenance.”
...
The Fort Worth’s problem “is similar, but not related to what happened with the Milwaukee,” said one source familiar with the situation. The Milwaukee’s problem could have a physical cause, while the Fort Worth’s problem seems to have come from personnel not following proper procedures.

During sea trials last summer, the Milwaukee also experienced a problem when an engine was improperly turned on while the ship was in port, and resulting repairs caused the trials to be delayed.

A Navy source provided more details of the problem experienced with the Fort Worth in Singapore.

“During startup of the main propulsion diesel engines, lub[rication] oil was not supplied to the ship's combining gears due to an apparent failure to follow standard procedures,” the Navy source said.

“The insufficient flow of lube oil resulted in high temperature alarms on the port and starboard combining gears. An investigation is underway to examine the issue in depth and determine the corrective action required to prevent such actions in the future.”

Knight noted that “casualties involving watch standing procedures are rare. Our LCS crews are well-trained and familiar with this LCS variant.”

Basic navigation skills; check. Standard maintenance proceedures; check.

Heck of a start for the new year. Why don't we just put LCS on a stick and put them outside Coast Guard Stations and call it even or sump'n?

I am so glad I don't work with Royal Navy officers anymore. They would be merciless.