U.S. Navy’s Deadliest New Sub Is Hobbled Over Spare Parts
- More than 1,600 parts were shuffled among Virginia-class subs
- The Navy forecasts a declining need to cannibalize parts
Photographer: Paul Hennessy/NurPhoto/Getty Images
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The U.S. Navy has swapped more than 1,600 parts among its new Virginia-class submarines since 2013 to ease maintenance bottlenecks as components that are supposed to last 33 years wear out decades sooner.
Parts are being shuttled regularly among the nuclear-powered fast-attack submarines so that vessels in the $166 billion class built by General Dynamics Corp. and Huntington Ingalls Industries Inc. can return to operations, according to data from the Naval Sea Systems Command and the Congressional Budget Office.