Navy may need to extend lives of attack subs

A projected shortfall in the number of attack submarines may force the Navy to examine whether it can extend the lives of some subs and keep them in the fleet beyond their scheduled retirements, a top Navy admiral told Congress on Wednesday.

Vice Adm. John Blake, the service’s top requirements officer, acknowledged that that the Navy’s sub fleet will grow smaller than its own acceptable minimum, which could force it to look for ways to keep boats serving longer.

But that may be difficult, cautioned a top naval analyst. Shipbuilding expert Ron O’Rourke of the Congressional Research Service, appearing after Blake before a panel of the House Armed Services Committee, warned lawmakers that it may be hard to extend the service of the Navy’s fast-attack subs because of limitations on the lives of their pressure hulls.

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