 The Ticonderoga-class guided-missile cruiser USS Vicksburg (CG 69) transits the Strait of Gibraltar as part of the Theodore Roosevelt Carrier Strike Group. The strike group is conducting naval operations in the U.S. 6th Fleet area of responsibility in support of U.S. national security interests in Europe. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist Seaman Anna Van Nuys/Released)/p
p ” data-medium-file=”https://news.usni.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/150331-N-ZF498-051-320×213.jpg” data-large-file=”https://news.usni.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/150331-N-ZF498-051-660×439.jpg” class=”size-full wp-image-11957″ src=”https://news.usni.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/150331-N-ZF498-051.jpg” alt=”” width=”4256″ height=”2832″ //p
pmore-41858)
Navy leaders had previously said the new program – not a direct replacement for the cruiser or destroyer, but a generic next step for the surface navy – would be awarded to a shipbuilder in 2023 or 2024. However, this week’s Fiscal Year 2020 budget request shows shipbuilding requests out through 2024 and makes no mention of the Large Surface Combatant procurement. A budget briefing noted $71 million in research and development funds in FY 2020 but provided no other clues about the program’s...