"The government was complicit," Sullivan told reporters at the Surface Navy symposium in Arlington, Virginia, Jan. 17. "We used the same procedures on our Los Angeles-class subs...not realizing we were opening ourselves up" to problems.Not according to what I've heard about the root causes. Read the article if you can keep your bile down.
Perhaps NGNN should have used better material controls and we wouldn't have this issue to debate.
Some welders and fitters used different welding materials than prescribed to hold portions of the boats together. Welding is a process that joins together materials, in this case steel and other metals, by heating a filler substance to form a pool of molten material that cools to produce a strong joint.
Using incorrect filler material, which included trace amounts of copper alloy welded into steel joints, can lead to cracking of the joints, and eventually, leaks, according to the Navy.
Once those errors were identified, the yard went to work repairing them, Dellapenta said.
In perhaps the most sweeping yard action, all welders and welding foremen will be required to attend a mandatory, eight-hour training session over the next few weeks. The training session will be followed by an examination, Dellapenta said.
More info here and here.
Additional thoughts: I might want to keep watch for what corporate boards VADM Sullivan inevitably is appointed to after retirement.
