Faulty welds spur inspection of 7 ships

[unhappycamper]

Seven vessels are being inspected after the discovery of faulty welds on new Virginia-class submarines.


Faulty welds spur inspection of 7 ships
By Andrew Scutro - Staff writer
Posted : Monday Dec 17, 2007 13:11:20 EST

NORFOLK, Va. — Shipyard workers are inspecting the welds of seven more Navy ships — including four aircraft carriers — after faulty welds were discovered on new Virginia-class submarines built at Northrop Grumman Newport News, according to a company spokeswoman.

The carriers George H.W. Bush, Carl Vinson, Enterprise and George Washington, along with Los Angeles-class attack submarines Oklahoma City, Newport News and Toledo, are being assessed for faulty welds similar to those discovered on the Virginia-class submarines built in part at Newport News, spokeswoman Jennifer Dellapenta wrote in an e-mail response to questions from Navy Times.

But how many total ships will be evaluated “has not yet been determined,” she wrote.

The carrier Bush is under construction at Newport News, Vinson is undergoing a refueling and overhaul at the shipyard, George Washington is in port, and the Enterprise is scheduled to return to Hampton Roads later this month from its deployment to the Middle East.

She wrote that the ships are being evaluated “combining technical analysis and inspections as necessary,” in the same manner that the Virginia-class submarines were assessed. Problems with welds in non-nuclear internal piping on new Virginia-class submarines were revealed in recent news reports, but until Dellapenta’s statement on Friday, there had been no mention of the problem possibly affecting other classes of ships.


Rest of article at: http://www.navytimes.com/news/2007/12/navy_faulty_shipwelds_071214w/