Lots of field-trial action this week. LPD, DDG, LCS, CVN trials. Lots of interesting coverage, and, as is becoming usual, the Navy Times/Defense News universe leads the way with a "let-it-all-hang-out" description of a manufacturers trial. It reports on a not-so-great trial, which, in itself, is great--nothing says confidence like a trial with a reporter aboard. Go read:
The missiles weren't fired. The gun test was stopped after five rounds. Software problems plagued a combat systems test. A leak partially flooded a compartment.
One of the first first-hand reports on a trial I've ever seen, too. It's just like the Chris Cavas LCS-1 cruise--a pretty honest first-person glimpse of a sensitive (and far too unreported) time aboard ship (No "fan-boy" he!). Kudos Chris (who should get an award for these stories, BTW) and, well, Kudos to General Dynamics for allowing this--sure, Bath may feel like it got egg all over it's face now, but the story does more to explain a program than any dry CRS report. It was honest, and gives people the "real" picture of what's going on. Bracing, yes, but it'll do more good for the company in the long run. (The next ship out of the stocks will be a lot better, mark my words...)
It might even help to mend a few fences in the shipbuilding world...Northrop Grumman, enjoying a successful trial of a new DDG, a product from the much-maligned Gulf Coast yards, should give Bath a big sloppy kiss. They finally get a moment in the sun. (But...not to rain on anybody's parade, but...How'd the LPD trial go, tho?)
The tension between access and secrecy is going to be with us for awhile. It's healthy, but, that said, in this era of complex systems, we, the taxpayers, need to get an occasional glimpse at how these complex systems come together to make a functional warship. It's not all sweetness and light sometimes, and the public and policymakers don't, in general, understand such stuff. But, more and more, the success of any given procurement project will rest upon how the technology meshes. And, when it's all an unsupervised black box, we taxpayers, more often than not, end up getting some real bloopers. Letting the public peek inside to see the sausage-making gives the public a little better basis for policy formulation--at least the debate can start moving beyond the "I fly it, you don't so shut the **** up" dynamic manifest in other programs.
That said, Austal and General Dynamics are still ironing out their PR Basics. They failed the Matt Mulherin "the ship will be accepted on date X" test, giving out a "concrete statement" on the trial dates rather than defuse expectations with an appropriately caveatted statement--you know, a "we'll be trying for a trial sometime this week, before the holiday, but you know how these things go. First naval ship from a brand-new shipyard. Pretty amazing, right? You'll know when the trial gets underway--when you see the ship heading down the channel..."
They've, obviously, got some things to iron out down there in Mobile. But I look forward to reading Chris Cavas's next LCS journey. And if anybody wants to extend an invite....I'd relish some time in the Speedy Burrito...
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