U.S. Navy and Marine Corps leaders faced the House Armed Services Committee to justify their fiscal 2010 budget request a day after a Government Accountability Office (GAO) report detailing how the Navy's approach to shipbuilding lacks the efficiencies that make the commercial process work well.

"The Navy must, I repeat, must come to terms with the number of ships they need to construct, develop a reasonable plan to construct them and then execute the plan," committee chairman Ike Skelton (D-Miss.) scolded chief of naval operations Adm. Gary Roughead and acting Navy Secretary B.J. Penn. "You must build your ships more efficiently."

The Navy has requested money in the FY '10 budget to build eight ships, with advanced procurement money for seven more. "That's a slow climb to 313," Skelton noted, citing the number the Navy has said it would like to achieve for its fleet.

Roughead agreed. "Eight ships isn't the largest number I'd like to see," he said.

Skelton told the Navy leaders that Congress will not be able to increase the size of the fleet "until you and your contractors agree on the capital investments necessary to modernize the construction process."

Roughead acknowledged improvements in shipbuilding are necessary, but pointed to his own efforts to control costs. "We are addressing these costs by maturing new ship designs to adequate levels before commencing production and by pursuing common hull forms, common components, proven designs and repeat builds of ships and aircraft to permit longer production runs and lower construction costs," he said.

Yesterday's GAO report said the service's emphasis on introducing new technologies on lead ships, often comes at the expense of other competing demands, including fleet size.

Over on the other side of Capitol Hill, the Senate Armed Services Committee confirmed Raymond Mabus as Navy Secretary and Bob Work, previously of the Center for Strategic and Budgetary Assessments, as undersecretary.

Photo: US Navy