뉴포트 뉴스 조선소의 용접불량에 영향을 받은 미해군 선박은 총 26척

[위종민]

현재 운용중인 군함 중에선 항모인 CVN-73 USS 조지 워싱턴, 공격용 잠수함인 SSN-795 하이먼.G.릭오버, SSN-769 USS 뉴저지 3척이 불량한 용접을 받은 배들이고, 그 외 신조/유지보수/핵연료 교환중인 항모 등 23척이 더 확인됐다고 합니다. 

Navy Says 26 Ships Affected by Faulty Welds at Newport News Shipyard in Virginia | Military.com

Navy Says 26 Ships Affected by Faulty Welds at Newport News Shipyard in Virginia

Navy Says 26 Ships Affected by Faulty Welds at Newport News Shipyard in Virginia

A Newport News Shipbuilding contractor uses a carbon arc aboard an aircraft carrier in Newport News, Virginia, Feb. 22, 2022. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist Seaman Curtis Burdick)

Military.com | By Konstantin Toropin

Published October 07, 2024 at 4:23pm ET

More than two dozen Navy ships -- including three that are currently in service -- received faulty welds at the Huntington Ingalls Industries shipyard in Newport News, Virginia, the service's top civilian leader told lawmakers last week.

In a letter to Congress dated Oct. 3, Navy Secretary Carlos Del Toro said that poor welds were found on the aircraft carrier USS George Washington as well as the attack submarines USS Hyman G. Rickover and USS New Jersey. In addition, the welding issues were identified on 23 more ships -- a mix of new construction, ships in maintenance and aircraft carriers undergoing refueling.

The existence of faulty welds became public nearly two weeks ago when USNI News, citing a Navy memo, reported that the sea service was told by Huntington Ingalls, or HII, that workers did not follow proper techniques on some joints in noncritical areas and that early indications suggested that some of the issues were intentional.

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Del Toro said that he became aware of the issue on Sept. 24, just days before the details became public.

A week later, the House Armed Services Committee formally demanded answers from the Navy in a letter to Del Toro where they asked for a briefing from the Navy leader by this Friday.

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"We want to understand the scope of the problem," the lawmakers wrote. "The safety of our sailors is our top concern, and we must immediately understand any risks associated with the faulty work."

Despite the back and forth of letters and even a public statement from HII's leadership, specific details such as how many welds are in question on any one ship or their location on the vessels remains unknown.

In his letter to Congress, Del Toro broadly stressed that the Navy "has assessed that the welds were not components or systems that affect ship safety or operations" and they "determined the ships are safe to operate."

Meanwhile, the shipyard's president, Jennifer Boykin, said in a social media post that HII learned of the issue after some of its workers "did the right thing and came forward by either self-reporting or calling the HII OpenLine." Boykin did not go into when the self-reporting occurred or how long it took HII to tell the Navy.

Todd Corillo, a spokesman for the company's shipbuilding division, said that once those reports were made, "we followed our protocol, took action to communicate with our customers and regulators in a timely manner and began working the issue with the Navy."

The Newport News shipyard is owned by one of only two companies that build nuclear-powered warships for the U.S. Navy and it is the only yard that builds the new Ford-class aircraft carrier.

As all of the involved parties investigate the issues, the prospect of operational effects appeared to be minimal.

Both the USS Rickover and USS New Jersey are newly commissioned submarines -- the New Jersey entered Navy service just last month -- and so any deployment is still months, if not years, away.

Meanwhile, the USS George Washington is in the middle of shifting its homeport to Japan and is similarly not slated for an operational deployment in the near future.

Both Del Toro and HII said that they've passed the matter on to the Justice Department for investigation, and Del Toro told Congress that "the Navy is eval‎uating all legal options and reserving our rights accordingly."

Related: Lawmakers Launch Investigation of Reported Faulty Welds on Navy Subs and Aircraft Carriers

Related Topics: Military Headlines US Navy Topics Gear and Equipment Ships Submarines Aircraft Carriers Defense Industry Acquisition

[Minowski(김유철)]

이게 무슨 중국에서나 있어야 할 일이........... 그나저나 단순히 작업자가 용접절차 등을 잘 제대로 지키지 않은 상황인지, 용접절차시방 같은 것 자체가 잘못된 상황인지........

[위종민]

https://news.usni.org/2024/09/26/doj-notified-of-suspected-intentionally-faulty-welds-on-subs-aircraft-carriers-at-newport-news-shipbuilding

이 기사상으로는 작업원들이 절차를 안 지킨 것 같습니다.

"HII reported to the Navy that welds on new construction and in-service submarines and Ford-class aircraft carriers were made not following welding procedure,"

"the workers did not follow proper techniques to weld the suspect joints with an early indication that some of the welding errors were intentional."

[Minowski(김유철)]

상황을 정확하게 알기어려워서 애매하긴한데, 선급같은 곳에서 검사원이 용접절차 확인하는 중에 발견한 거면 정상적인 QC활동 중 결함사항을 발견한 것일수도 있는 상황인데.... 워낙 건함, MRO 능력문제가 이슈가 되니 확대해서 이해되는건지, 아니면 심각한 태만이나 대충대충이 일상화되었거나 더 심각하게는 사보타지급의 행위가 실제로 있었던건지... 지난번 관련기사와 이번 기사로 추정컨데 미숙련공이 작업량많으니까 모양만 예쁘게 용접하고 만 것 같습니다만..

[백선호]

항모로 개조된 야마토 3번함 시나노는 급히 만들다 여러모로 workmanship이 “substandard"였고 그래서 어뢰 맞고 더 쉽게 침몰했다고 합니다.

[위종민]

6만 톤 넘는 거함이 어뢰 4발 맞고 갔네요. @.@