European Stars And Stripes (Newspaper) - January 26, 1988, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Navy launches redesign study of surface ships tuesday january 26, 1988 the stars and stripes Page 9 by Jim Stew Art col news service Washington the Navy has begun a study of design changes thai would radically alter the Way surface warships of the future would look and fight. The redesign proposes which Are biting hotly debited within the service would do away with Many characteristics of Modem Navy vessels Large Bridges with panoramic views sleek razor Sharp profiles and the noticeable absence of visible weapons. Instead warships of he future would look More like Coal barges according to one Admiral s idea. Silling Low in he water heir decks would be Honey combed with missile doors covering ver tical launch lubes. The ship would be driven from a Small Periscope like Bridge thai would retract beneath the deck Dur ing combat. Inflammable items especially paper would be reduced the size of the Crew would be Cut in half. The ship s command Center where the Captain would stay and direct the Bailie would be far below ducks in an Armor protected Center linked by radar and computer to the rest of the Fleet. Adm. Carlisle . Trust chief of naval operations ordered the ship operational characteristics study. A report with recommendations is due by april. The debate Over ship design goes far beyond cosmetics and hns been brewing in the Navy for several years. It encompasses a variety of issues including costs. Efficiency and safety. Following the disastrous fire that swept the guided mis Sile frigate Stark killing 37 sailors last year in the persian Gulf Many experts questioned the survivability of modern ship designs. In addition there is the emotional Issue of Navy tradition. For decades ship captains have commanded from spacious Bridges High above the water and men of War have exhibited the most dashing designs on the was. Even their supporters admit that the new designs arc not inspiring. It s ugly no doubt about it said re tired adm. Elmo Zumwalt former chief of naval operations and an Early advocate of redesign but if ship captains had it to Fijohl with they d love  the current Champion of redesign is Viet adm. Joseph Metcalf. Who recently retired As chief of the Navy s surface warfare Branch. Me calf is worried trial because of budget constraints and a desire for More creature comforts the Navy has allowed its ships to get overburdened with men and equipment not essential to fighting. In the Post world War ii Era it Al most Sterns that we thought of weapons As an afterthought for several ship classes Metcalf wrote for proceedings a professional journal published monthly by the . Naval Institute. The Navy has gotten away from a Basic axiom of warfare Metcalf charged the maximum amount of firepower must be concentrated on a target. More missiles Mutt be added me calf said. A warship s future Baule space extends to the limits of those missiles up 100,000 feet out 1,200 Miles and Down thou Sands of feet beneath the surface. To survive in future sea bancs a revolutionary design change is called for me calf said. Administrative offices libraries signal Bridges and increasingly larger living quarters must give Way. Crew sizes should be reduced and personnel and administrative functions left to Shore personnel ideally the internal volume of a ship would be filled entirely Wilh vertical mis Sile launching tubes anywhere from 100 to 200 of them running the length of the ship. The Stark by comparison car Ries Only 40 missiles me calf reserves particular scum for inc Modem ships Bridges. They arc a waste of space he declared and their High profiles contribute dangerously 10 the ships visibility on enemy radar. They Are a throwback to the Days when the Captain watched the fall of Cannon shot he said. The result of Metcalfe recommendations would be reminiscent of the civil wat Era Monitor which was All general Anatomy of a . Surface warship note actual types and locations of weapons and systems vary by Type and class of ship. Those depicted Are weapons and systems normally fitted on . Warships. External communications 20 my. Phalanx air and surface surveillance Sam Sam _76 my. Mi"759lnss major sonar tube weapons command and control a5w rocket launcher mk-36 Chat Roc super Roc anti submarine rocket. Sam Sam missile launcher capable of firing Standard or surface to air and Harpoon surface to Surtala missiles. Torpedo tubes mk-32 torpedoes Antl us Dunarine Antl ship weapon. Decoy mk-6 fanfare torpedo Decoy system. Slim launcher sea launched cruise missile slim nuclear ground attack and anti snip missiles. 76 ram. Mk-75 gun dual purpose Remote controlled gun fires up to 90 rounds per a minute Defenso against sea skimming missiles and air targets. Stem mounted variable depth sonar 20 my. Phalanx my 16 gun computer controlled dose in weapons system cows ires up to 3,000 rounds per minute close in defense. Rel Cratl sh-2 lamps snip launched helicopter anti submarine and missile defense carries two mk-46 ask torpedoes. Utica a Tribune graphic by Tarry  Jana s re Hong ships. Corter of Felonse info Matfen fight and no frills. The idea is not without controversy within the Navy act calf personality has added to the fray. A bantamweight fiery tempered Admiral he first Drew Public attention As the on seen com Mander of inc Grenada invasion in 1983. We blew them away me calf told reporters after the Brief action Rais ing a storm of questions about the Neces sity of the operation. Zumwalt too has proposed Radical changes to ship designs. He favors mod ular construction techniques popularized in West Germany this allows engineers to rapidly replace pans or weapons an Standard Hull forms thus changing the configuration of a ship and its Mission. Norman Polmar a leading naval de sign analyst believes budgetary constraints and manpower shortages May drive the Navy to join the Reform move ment. This is an idea whose time has come Polmar said. The Navy is still building and Man Ning ships with world War ii in mind Palmar suggested. Captains like big Bridges so they can run from one end to the other and look fore and aft. It s All psychological he said. They needed Large Crews to Man the guns and scrape and paint All the Bridge work. It s unnecessary and a  pcs Ign. Changes also touch on the question of survivability in o High tech sea Battle. The falklands War Between Brilain and Argentina remains inc most recent Large scale Model for naval tacticians to study and it was filled with examples of ship vulnerability to missile attack. The British lost sin vessels to missiles and bomb including one struck by the same Type French made exocet that crippled inc Slark. Although the exocet failed to explode in that incident he missile s fuel Supply ignited and the ship was destroyed by fire. Couple planning to give away expected baby Francois list and Keltne it Volkl pose with Shtir 4-Nkhlth-Dld Hub Kif. Id their Hometown of Rouen France. Letl Sii and Deville have announced that they Are expecting spin and because they cannot afford to support Mother chill the inn wish id Giveaway the bub utilise birth is awaited