Congress orders probe into ‘intentional’ construction flaws in Navy vessels

A shipbuilder’s report earlier discovered “faulty welding” on several US submarines and aircraft carriers

US lawmakers have ordered a probe into reports of substandard welding “knowingly made” on submarines and aircraft carriers, both under construction and in-service within the US Navy. In a statement released on Friday, the House Armed Services Committee (HASC) charged the Pentagon with investigating the matter and coming up with a plan for “how to protect” Navy vessels against further “tampering.”

The HASC’s move follows last week’s report by Newport News Shipbuilding, which said it discovered faulty welds on components of several in-service Navy vessels. The company is one of two nuclear shipyards in the US that construct Ford-class aircraft carriers, sections of Virginia-class attack submarines, and Columbia-class nuclear ballistic missile submarines.

According to USNI news, the shipyard also said it found that the flaws “may have been made intentionally,” and submitted its report to the Navy, the Department of Justice, and Huntington Ingalls Industries (HII), the company that owns it and the country’s largest military shipbuilder.

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The issue subsequently drew attention from Congress, with the HASC expressing concern as it involves vessels “critical” to national security.

“It is deeply concerning to learn that faulty welds may have been knowingly made to US Navy submarines and aircraft carriers… We must ensure that these vessels are protected against any bad actors seeking to put US national security or our service members at risk,” the committee said in its statement.

HII, which is currently inspecting Newport News’ findings, later said it discovered that “some welders knowingly circumvented certain welding procedures,” but claimed that they found “no indication of malicious intent.”

The Navy acknowledged that it was aware of the problem in a statement on Thursday, saying it was conducting “a thorough evaluation to determine the scope” of the ships affected. A Pentagon source later told USNI News that the number of in-service Virginia-class subs that have faulty welding is in the “low single digits,” but it may take some time to determine how many other vessels, both in-service and under construction, have the problem.

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It is not clear when the initial faulty work was discovered, nor what penalties await the welders and the shipyard following the probe.

Newport News Shipbuilding has already faced investigations over welding procedures twice, in 2007 and 2009. One of the probes triggered an inspection that lasted nearly a decade, according to media reports.