US Navy nixes Constellation frigate program after two ships half-built

ROME — The US Navy is cancelling its Constellation frigate program following months of cost overruns and delays but plans to keep two vessels that are already being built in Wisconsin.

“We’re reshaping how we build and field the Fleet, working with industry to deliver warfighting advantage, beginning with a strategic shift away from the Constellation-class frigate program,” Navy Secretary John C. Phelan said in a post on X.

Phelan said that four ships under contract but yet to be built by Fincantieri would now be cancelled.

“The navy and our industry partners have reached a comprehensive framework that terminates for the Navy’s convenience the last four ships of the class which have not begun construction,” he said.

“We greatly value the shipbuilders of Michigan and Wisconsin. While work continues on the first two ships those ships remain under review as we work through this strategic shift. Keeping this critical workforce employed and the yard viable for future navy shipbuilding is of foremost concern,” he added.

Italian shipyard Fincantieri won the contract to build the frigates in 2020 at its Marinette Marine yard in Wisconsin, with the US Navy eyeing an eventual order of 20 ships.

The baseline design was Fincantieri’s FREMM frigate, which is already in service with the French and Italian navies among others. The U.S. Navy originally reported “basic and functional designs” were 88% complete.

But a March report by the United States Government Accountability Office claimed the U.S. Navy proceeded to order numerous design changes, meaning that five years on, the program was only 70% complete and three years late.

“As a result of these changes, in part, the frigate now bears little resemblance to the parent design that the Navy touted as a built-in, risk reduction measure for the program in 2020,” the report stated.

“Now, in 2025, the ongoing redesign has driven weight growth at levels that exceed available tolerances. Already the Navy is considering a reduction in the frigate’s speed requirement as one potential way, among others, to resolve this weight growth,” the report added.

In his statement on Tuesday, Phelan said, “The facts are clear. It is time to deliver the ship our warfighters need at a pace that matches the threat environment, not the comfort level of the bureaucracy.”

In a statement, Fincantieri said it expected to receive new orders for “amphibious, icebreaking and other special mission” ships to compensate for lost business.

“On top of the aforementioned award of future orders, in order to cover the above, the agreement indemnifies Fincantieri Marine Group, on existing economic commitments and industrial impacts through measures provided by the U.S. Navy, as a result of the contractual decision made for its own convenience,” the firm said.

Fincantieri said it has invested more than $800 million in its four U.S. shipyards: Marinette, Green Bay, Sturgeon Bay, and Jacksonville, and now employs 3,750 staff in the United States.

George Moutafis, CEO of Fincantieri Marine Group, said, “Our investments in the U.S. shipyards are a testament to our long-term vision: to be a cornerstone of the U.S. maritime industrial base and a driving force to sustain the momentum of the national shipbuilding renaissance, the American shipbuilding renaissance.”

Sources in Italy told Defense News the work on the six frigates had been worth $5.5 billion. Continuing work on the first two, plus indemnities agreed with the U.S. government, would be worth $3 billion, while new orders planned would be worth $2 billion.

Phelan’s decision to truncate the Constellation program was praised by Senate Armed Services Committee Chairman Sen. Roger Wicker (R-Miss.).

“I commend (the Navy secretary) for canceling the troubled Constellation-class frigate program — a tough but vital call. Biden-era design changes derailed the contractor, but Fincantieri Marinette Marine will remain key to our shipbuilding future. This is a clear signal that Navy program management is being fixed and accountability restored. Stronger Navy ahead!”

In his statement, Phelan added, “The Navy needs ships and looks forward to building them in every shipyard that can. A key factor in this decision is the need to grow the fleet faster to meet tomorrow’s threats. This framework puts the Navy on a path to more rapidly construct new classes of ships and deliver the capability our warfighters need in greater numbers on a more urgent timeline.”

Editor’s note: This story was updated after publication to specify the value of the initial Constellation contract: $5.5 billion.

Tom Kington is the Italy correspondent for Defense News.

罗马——由于数月来成本超支和延误，美国海军取消了“星座”级护卫舰项目，但计划保留两艘已经在威斯康星州建造的舰艇。

“我们正在重塑舰队的建设和部署方式，与业界合作，以提供作战优势，首先要从战略上转变，放弃星座级护卫舰计划，”海军部长约翰·C·费兰在X网站上发表的一篇文章中写道。

费兰表示，芬坎蒂尼集团已签订合同但尚未建造的四艘船舶订单将被取消。

他说：“海军和我们的工业合作伙伴已经达成了一项全面的框架协议，为了海军的方便，终止了该级舰艇中最后四艘尚未开工建造的舰艇的建造。”

“我们非常重视密歇根州和威斯康星州的造船工人。虽然前两艘舰艇的建造工作仍在进行中，但随着我们推进这一战略转型，这些舰艇仍处于审查阶段。保障这支关键队伍的就业以及船厂未来继续为海军造船提供保障，是我们首要关注的问题，”他补充道。

意大利造船厂芬坎蒂尼 (Fincantieri) 于 2020 年赢得了在其位于威斯康星州马里内特的造船厂建造护卫舰的合同，美国海军最终计划订购 20 艘。

基准设计方案是芬坎蒂尼集团的FREMM护卫舰，该舰已在法国和意大利海军等国服役。美国海军最初报告称，“基本和功能性设计”已完成88%。

但美国政府问责局 3 月份的一份报告称，美国海军随后下令进行多次设计变更，这意味着五年过去了，该项目仅完成了 70%，并且延误了三年。

报告指出：“由于这些变化，这艘护卫舰现在与海军在 2020 年吹捧为该项目内置风险降低措施的母设计几乎没有相似之处。”

报告补充说：“如今，到了2025年，持续进行的重新设计导致舰艇重量增长超过了允许的公差范围。海军已经在考虑降低护卫舰的航速要求，作为解决重量增长问题的潜在方法之一。”

费兰在周二的声明中表示：“事实很清楚。现在是时候以与威胁环境相匹配的速度，而不是以官僚机构的舒适度为标准，交付我们作战人员需要的战舰了。”

芬坎蒂尼集团在一份声明中表示，预计将收到“两栖船、破冰船和其他特殊任务”船舶的新订单，以弥补业务损失。

该公司表示：“除了上述授予的未来订单外，为了涵盖上述内容，该协议还通过美国海军提供的措施，对芬坎蒂尼海事集团现有的经济承诺和工业影响进行赔偿，而这些措施是由于美国海军出于自身便利而做出的合同决定所致。”

芬坎蒂尼集团表示，已在其位于美国的四个造船厂（马里内特、格林湾、斯特金湾和杰克逊维尔）投资超过 8 亿美元，目前在美国雇佣了 3750 名员工。

芬坎蒂尼海事集团首席执行官乔治·穆塔菲斯表示：“我们对美国造船厂的投资证明了我们的长期愿景：成为美国海事工业基础的基石，并成为推动国家造船业复兴、美国造船业复兴势头的驱动力。”

意大利消息人士告诉《防务新闻》，这六艘护卫舰的建造工程价值55亿美元。继续建造前两艘护卫舰，加上与美国政府达成的赔偿协议，总价值将达30亿美元，而计划中的新订单价值将达20亿美元。

费兰决定终止星座计划，这一决定受到了参议院军事委员会主席罗杰·威克参议员（密西西比州共和党）的赞扬。

“我赞扬（海军部长）取消了陷入困境的星座级护卫舰项目——这是一个艰难但至关重要的决定。拜登时代的设计变更使承包商陷入困境，但芬坎蒂尼·马里内特海事公司仍将是我们造船业未来发展的关键。这清楚地表明，海军项目管理正在得到改进，问责制也正在恢复。海军未来将更加强大！”

费兰在声明中补充道：“海军需要舰艇，并期待在所有有能力的造船厂建造舰艇。这项决定的关键因素在于需要更快地扩充舰队，以应对未来的威胁。这一框架将使海军能够更快地建造新型舰艇，并在更紧迫的时间内，以更大的数量为我们的作战人员提供所需的能力。”

编者按：本文发表后进行了更新，明确了星座计划初始合同的价值：55亿美元。

汤姆·金顿是《防务新闻》驻意大利记者。