After working through combining gear issues on the Freedom-variant Littoral Combat Ships, the Navy will conduct at-sea testing this September. The Navy implemented a design change to the gear bearings after a root cause assessment found the ball bearings were not sufficient on the ship, Howard Berkof, LCS deputy program manager, told attendees of the Navy League's Sea-Air-Space conference on Monday. The combining gear is complicated because it integrates the ship's gas turbines and diesel engines to provide maximum speed...
