Saturday 7 January 2012

New US defense plans shore up submarine production

Norwich, Conn. —

Electric Boat in Groton will benefit from the reshaping of the nation’s military, which will place a larger emphasis on Asia and emerging tactics that require a powerful undersea warfare presence, federal lawmakers said Thursday.

“We’re going to be fighting wars in different ways than we have. But we in Connecticut produce weaponry that fits that new kind of warfare,” U.S. Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., said in an interview with The Bulletin’s editorial board. “I will fight relentlessly and resourcefully for those defense products made in Connecticut.”

Blumenthal’s comments came hours after President Barack Obama and Defense Secretary Leon Panetta issued a 16-page strategic plan called “Sustaining U.S. Global Leadership: Priorities for 21st Century Defense,” aimed at shaping the nation’s military over the next decade.

Blumenthal and U.S. Rep. Joe Courtney, D-2nd District, expressed confidence that the report’s focus on the Pacific and endorsement of strategies, including electronic and cyber warfare, bodes well for EB.

‘Versatile and effective’

“Submarines are versatile and effective, and the vital role their unique capabilities will play in a changing defense landscape was reaffirmed again by today’s report,” Courtney said in a press release. “It ... emphasizes for a leaner, more agile force.”

Thursday’s news follows the announcement late last month of a $191.3 million EB contract for continued engineering, technical services and other work on a missile compartment for two vessels.
In a separate statement issued later in the day, Blumenthal said he’s confident the country’s defense plan means Virginia-class submarines will continue to be built in Eastern Connecticut.


EB President John P. Casey shares that hope.

“We remain confident the capabilities brought to bear by our products satisfy many of the strategic priorities outlined by the secretary today, and we will closely follow details that emerge as the budget process unfolds,” he said in a statement to the Blog.
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Blumenthal, a member of the Senate’s Committee on Armed Services, also called for priority-based funding in the defense budget.

“The smart cuts can be made with significant savings. But we have a difficult road ahead, there’s no question. The challenges would be difficult even if there were no Republican or Democratic parties, because the challenge really is to meet those defense needs within very restrained and limited resources,” he said. “In making those cuts, there will have to be give and take.”

EB in October won $91.2 million on top of an earlier contract for modification to develop and update design drawings and evaluate new technology for Virginia-class submarines.

Steady stream of work

Tony Sheridan, president and CEO of the Chamber of Commerce of Eastern Connecticut, said the possibility of two new submarines being built annually is “good news.”

“Two submarines allows for a steady stream of work. It’s supporting a sizable enough workforce that can be productive without the constant layoffs and re-hires,” Sheridan said. “The ripple effect of putting together a submarine is very, very broad. And it’s marvelous because of the fact that so much of this work cannot be exported.”

Maureen Murray, of Colchester, was happy to hear of the prospects.
“I’m not for war, but if the jobs to support them have to exist, I’d like them to exist in my backyard,” she said. “You can’t even get a support job around here right now.

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