Why Slow Construction Of The Navy’s ‘Fabulously Successful’ DDG-51 Destroyer When Plans For A Successor Are Unclear? (From Forbes)

The DDG-51 Arleigh Burke class of destroyers is one of the most successful naval construction programs in modern history. It is the most versatile destroyer ever built, and on any given day dozens are deployed around the globe. But the Navy has begun talking about a Large Surface Combatant that might serve as the Burke’s successor–one with more space and power generation for new weapons. There’s nothing wrong with thinking about tomorrow, but the new warship is a long way off and may never come to fruition. Slowing construction of the Navy’s most important surface combatant in the expectation of a replacement that might never appear would be a mistake. I have written a commentary for Forbes here.