NORFOLK, Va. — A new Government Accountability Office (GAO) report is examining whether the Navy is getting the biggest bang for its buck when it comes to performing maintenance on combat surface ships.
On average, the Navy invests approximately $6.5 billion annually in maintenance for these ships.
The report reveals that the Navy has encountered challenges related to maintenance.
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“They have not been able to get good results for the money, so all too often ships are not fully maintained,” said Diana Maurer, a GAO director.
The GAO was requested by Congress to investigate the Navy's expenditures on maintenance programs for combat surface ships.
The Navy operates around 150 combat surface ships, including cruisers, destroyers, and amphibious assault ships.
However, challenges persist, particularly concerning crew shortages.
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“Roughly speaking, we found for every six sailors the Navy says it needs to be aboard ships, it only has assigned five," said Maurer.
The issue of shipbuilding and repair is particularly critical in the Hampton Roads area.
In December, Sen. Mark Warner (D-Va.) and Rep. Jen Kiggans (R-Va.) met with shipbuilding industry representatives to discuss how Congress can provide more reliability and predictability to support planning efforts.
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“We don’t have enough ships. The ships that we have are getting older. We need to keep our older ships at sea, so the ship repair industry is vital to that. So what are we doing to ensure they have the funding they need to keep their workforce to get their work done?" Kiggans said.
Maurer also emphasized that maintenance issues directly affect military readiness.
“The Navy has a plan for the kinds of maintenance that needs to be done and when, and when the Navy does not abide by that plan, when they defer maintenance, it means that things that should have been fixed are more likely to break later on down the road. And when that happens, ships can't sail.”
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The report outlines 46 recommendations to address these concerns, including reviewing crew sizes on ships and reporting annually on the consequences of deferred maintenance.
The Navy is currently making progress on 12 of these recommendations.
“Broadly speaking, the Navy can really help itself by ensuring it has enough sailors aboard the ships. That helps with maintenance; it helps with morale. It can also address some of the critical shortages in spare parts,” Maurer said.
