Gunfight! Does the Navy’s Little Warship Need a Bigger Cannon?
Currently, both versions of LCS, the Lockheed Martin-made Freedom class and the Austal-made Independence class, carry a BAE Systems Mark 110 57-millimeter gun. The bow-mounted gun is the ship’s main defense against fast-moving and swarming boats.
But rival firm DRS Technologies says its OTO Melara 76-millimeter gun is more powerful and can fire smart rounds at longer ranges, meaning it could strike sooner than theBAE weapon.
“You don’t want to be outgunned,” said Eric Lindenbaum, vice president of Navy and Maritime programs for DRSTechnologies, hefting a dummy 76-millimeter round. “The 76 is bigger [and] goes farther. I can hit further away from you and I can hit you and you can’t hit me.”
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