I know that your focus is on Polar icebreakers, but have you considered digging into the Coast Guard's smaller ice breakers as well on the Great Lakes? It seems like there was some movement on the topic a few years ago. The Mackinaw and the smaller 140' ice breakers should all be due for recapitalization in the 2030's. As the article below suggests, the USCG might be able to acquire at least one "Great Lakes" icebreaker that is robust enough to work in the Arctic.
Even if we think there is a funding solution to get to 9 icebreakers, steady-state we are looking at producing icebreakers with a 4-5 year gap between them assuming a 35 year service life. That’s a pretty marginal build rate to maintain the skills and equipment needed for a specialist vessel. Given all the needs of rebuilding the maritime industrial base at the moment, I think not tackling icebreakers domestically, at least in the short term has a lot going for it…
Wow. There should be a giant flashing neon sign above Rep. Auchincloss "Common Sense in the Nation's Interest" ... this is what it looks like
I know that your focus is on Polar icebreakers, but have you considered digging into the Coast Guard's smaller ice breakers as well on the Great Lakes? It seems like there was some movement on the topic a few years ago. The Mackinaw and the smaller 140' ice breakers should all be due for recapitalization in the 2030's. As the article below suggests, the USCG might be able to acquire at least one "Great Lakes" icebreaker that is robust enough to work in the Arctic.
https://www.forbes.com/sites/craighooper/2021/09/12/congress-authorizes-a-great-lakes-icebreaker-the-coast-guard-doesnt-need/
Even if we think there is a funding solution to get to 9 icebreakers, steady-state we are looking at producing icebreakers with a 4-5 year gap between them assuming a 35 year service life. That’s a pretty marginal build rate to maintain the skills and equipment needed for a specialist vessel. Given all the needs of rebuilding the maritime industrial base at the moment, I think not tackling icebreakers domestically, at least in the short term has a lot going for it…
Thanks for another interesting read.
18theses.com
I don’t know how the Coast Guard procures and builds but DOD procurement is long broken, PPBE is a 6 year, 28 signatures process.
It’s miraculous anything gets done.