Royal Navy going to shit...

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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-38138874

Royal Navy ships are being kept in service "well beyond their sell-by-date", an independent report has said.
Sir John Parker said new ships were also being ordered too late, creating a "vicious cycle" which was depleting the fleet and wasting taxpayers' money.

He said Navy contracts should be shared among companies across the UK to cut build time and spread prosperity.

The defence secretary said that approach had already proved successful in building new aircraft carriers.

Sir John's warnings echo those of the Commons defence select committee last week, which warned that Britain's defences were at risk amid uncertainty over plans to replace the "woefully low" number of warships.

Sir John, chairman of mining giant Anglo American, was tasked with examining how the British naval shipbuilding industry could be made sustainable while increasing exports.

Do what the russkis do.  Send along a tug.

Hmm.

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2016...nama-canal

The most expensive destroyer ever built for the US navy has suffered an engineering problem in the Panama Canal and had to be towed to port.

US Third Fleet spokesman commander Ryan Perry said a vice-admiral directed the USS Zumwalt to remain at ex-Naval Station Rodman in Panama to address the issues, which arose on Monday.

The ship was built at Bath Iron Works in Maine and was on its way to San Diego.

“The schedule for the ship will remain flexible to enable testing and evaluation in order to ensure the ship’s safe transit to her new home port in San Diego,” Perry said in a statement.

USNI News, a publication of the US Naval Institute, reported on its website that the ship was in the canal when it lost propulsion.

Crew also saw water getting into bearings that connect electrical motors to driveshafts, the website reported.