Taking a closer look at the health of the US Navy
By: Everett Pyatt  
The U.S. Navy’s Board of Inspection and Survey, commonly called INSURV, was established in 1868 to provide an independent evaluation of the condition of ships and their ability to perform their missions. It has been in operation continuously since then. (It also performs acceptance trials for new ships.) Examinations are rigorous and based upon expected performance in roughly 20 categories. For many years, the results were public; but in 2008, several ships failed the examinations, and the reports became restricted. Two years ago, Congress directed that reports be unclassified. This report reflects the 2020 evaluation based on 40 ship evaluations. Ships are scheduled to be evaluated every three years.
Ratings are based on a figure of merit, which has been consistent over several years. Thus, it provides a reasonable measure of performance consistency. As shown in the following extract from the recent report, there has been a six-year declining trend. Attempts to reverse the trend have been futile, so the future challenge is to identify reasons, establish corrective plans and, most importantly, implement them.
https://www.defensenews.com/opinion/commentary/2021/03/12/taking-a-closer-look-at-the-health-of-the-us-navy/
