Hagel Expands on ‘Considerable Reservations’ About Littoral Ship

U.S. Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel said his “considerable reservations” about the Littoral Combat Ship led him to bar planning for any more than 32 of the vessels, 20 fewer than the Navy’s $34 billion program.

“Given the emerging threat environment of the future, I have considerable reservations as to whether this is what our Navy will require over the next few decades,” Hagel said in a memorandum to Navy Secretary Ray Mabus.