The Navy's requirement for small surface combatants will remain at least 52 ships in the forthcoming 2016 force structure assessment, according to a senior service official, setting the stage for proponents of the Littoral Combat Ship program to continue to contest the decision last year by the defense secretary to cut the planned acquisition to 40 ships. Sean Stackley, the Navy's acquisition executive, told the House Armed Services oversight and investigations subcommittee Dec. 8 that an internal review of...
