Editors' Pick|2,702 views|Jun 9, 2020,11:44pm EDT
The Navy’s New Battlefield Needs Small Nuclear-Powered Warships
Craig Hooper
The U.S. Navy’s Cold War love affair with nuclear-powered surface combatants came to an ignominious end in mid-1999. Left with no viable rival at sea, the enormous sticker price and high operational cost of small nuclear-powered surface combatants outweighed the tactical advantages of nuclear power. The nine ships of America’s nuclear-powered escort fleet were summarily decommissioned after as little as sixteen years of service.
Times have changed. Now that the United States is facing new challenges at sea and high-powered electronic weapons are coming into the fore, it may be time for the Navy to take another look at nuclear power technology. Safer, smaller and lower-cost nuclear options (modular reactors or other innovative power-generation solutions) can be about ready to support America’s hard-pressed fleet.
https://www.forbes.com/sites/craighooper/2020/06/09/the-next-new-battlefield-needs-small-nuclear-powered-warships/#27acf087516b
