The Missing Capabilities from Sea

Some comments by the CNO.

Roughead said the Navy can continue supporting operations as long as it takes.

"That's what you get when you have a global Navy that's forward all the time," he said. "We don't surge, and we don't ride to the sound of the guns. We're there, and when the guns go off, we're ready to conduct combat operations, or, as you see in Japan, ready to conduct some pretty extensive humanitarian operations."

In the run-up to the operations, the admiral told the group, the Joint Chiefs of Staff deliberated on the military actions that would be required. Roughead said he was particularly concerned about Moammar Gadhafi's integrated air and missile defense system. Though the system was old, he said, "I don't take any of that for granted. If someone is going to put a missile in the air, you don't say, 'Oh, it's an old one, I'll worry about it later.'"

Roughead said logistics was another concern, but the Navy's robust presence in the Mediterranean comes with re-supply ships afloat and depots ashore. The global supply chain has worked well, he said, adding that he anticipates no problem in keeping operations going.

The Navy has done everything right, including not bringing an aircraft carrier into the fight. However, I have not heard anyone point out yet that the Navy is missing one capability that would sure be handy right now for Libya. If you pull out a map of the nation, you will notice a coastal road the runs all the way across the country through many of the largest cities in the country, and it includes all the cities right now that are seeing the most combat.

Wouldn't it be nice if instead of all these air strikes to slowly plink targets outside the town, the Navy could shell those positions with naval gunfire from sea? Clearly the DDG-1000 could do it, but the cost of those shells will make the Tomahawk missile strikes look like monopoly money.

Lets ask the tough question. What role would the Littoral Combat Ship play in the Libya scenario? Would the LCS be for interdiction operations for the embargo? Isn't the bigger issue here that the Littoral Combat Ship lacks the combat capability to influence activity on land from the littorals?

I am all for the LCS as an unmanned mothership, but I am also unaware of any unmanned system deployed by the LCS that will add credible combat capability for supporting operations on land. What is the legitimate Naval Gunfire Support alternative that was supposed to come as part of the truncated purchase of DDG-1000s, and why isn't it being tested in Libya?