- May 17, 2013
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I disagree............While gas turbines are harder to maintain and troubleshoot they are much faster than the old CG's and 1200 pound superheated steam at about 950 degrees.........Running full throttle your extremely lucky to get 35 knots out of it. The Gas turbines are used to be able to keep up with the CV's............which can HAUL ASS...........So fast that they will shake the living hell out of the ship...........
What's the sense of having "modern" ships if they can't do their jobs? LCS ships keep breaking down. One spent the winter stuck in the Great Lakes because it couldn't navigate the ice. And, when they do work, they either run into other ships or let other ships run into them.
The catamaran-style expeditionary fast transport ships, according to the report, were supposed to be able to carry 1.2 million pounds of cargo for 1,200 nautical miles at an average speed of 35 knots, or about 40 miles per hour. But initial testing showed the ships were only able to carry that amount for 769 nautical miles at an average speed of 31 knots.
The aluminum ships have a large cargo space and a flight deck for helicopters and drones. They were designed to respond to a wide variety of military missions and could also be used in evacuations and disaster relief.
More @ Navy ship designed for fast transport has speed, transportation problems, report says
Modern Navy Warships have gas turbine power which is high maintenance. Old Navy Warships used JP-5 to fire steam boilers, 1500 PSI and the Guided Missile Destroyer circa 1968 could make 40 Knots No Smoke. In most cases old tech is better than new tech. Rooster Tails were common and green water over the signal bridge was not uncommon. Maximum speed on any ship is not determined by HP but the ratio of length X width. The best ratio is just under 10:1.
Another problem with the old boiler systems.......Heat signature.........easier to detect via heat................others.....steam leaks...............heat stress in the engine rooms causing loss of control air..........and others.............
The gas turbines don't have those problems...........but are a pain in the butt to troubleshoot.........I only had limited experience with that..........as the one I worked was small for back up power.............in case you lose the SSTG's Ships Service Turbine Generators......