WASHINGTON, D.C. – This May, the Obama administration unveiled a plan to overhaul and replace the nation’s current fleet of 14 nuclear submarines with 12 state-of-the-art Nuclear Ballistic Missile Submarines (SSBN[X]’s). The Navy itself has raised concerns about the plan, which would potentially cost hundreds of billions of dollars and jeopardize the likelihood of obtaining vessels in the future.
Nuclear submarines came of age in the 1950s and arose out of a necessity for vessels that could stay at sea for long periods of time without refueling. Since the USS Nautilus was first put to sea in 1955, the United States and Russia have engaged in a high-stakes, high-dollar game of “Battleship” that peaked in intensity during the Cold War.
Constant upgrades in technology and shifting attitudes toward the need for deterrent patrols have resulted in a widespread of weapons reduction programs. In fact, at least 300 of the 400 vessels globally in-use from 1989 have since been scrapped, or slated for cancellation.
The 14 submarines that comprise the U.S. current fleet will soon be put to pasture, making way for the next generation of nuclear technology. The 12 new SSB[X] ships – comprising of one lead ship and eleven other boats – will come with new reactor cores, new electrical drives and will likely be quieter than their predecessors.
According to the National Defense Authorization Act for FY 2014, these puppies will cost a pretty penny: the lead ship will likely cost $12 billion ($7.4 billion in construction costs and $4.6 billion in detailed design costs) while the other eleven boats will run between $4.9 billion and $5.4 billion depending on the success of cost-reduction efforts.
Assuming that the Navy could cross one average ship off of their 2014 wish list (and that contractors whittle down the cost of these ships to the goal of a $4.9 billion mark), the administration could conceivably save millions of lives – literally – by redirecting these navy expenses into funds for the Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunisation (GAVI).
GAVI represents a conglomeration of international organizations, donor governments, financial organizations and pharmaceutical industry leaders that aim to reach 22.6 million children who do not receive life-saving vaccines. Since 2010, GAVI has immunized children against major pathological threats to childhood health, including HPV, Japanese encephalitis, rubella and yellow fever, among others.
Their 2010-2015 goals require an additional $4.3 billion in funding to fulfill the organization’s mission and meet current vaccine demands. An additional $2.6 billion represents a supplemental milestone slated for new vaccine development (e.g., meningitis, rubella, and typhoid) and the full roll-out of rotavirus and pneumococcal vaccines for the causes of severe diarrhea and meningitis, ear infections and blood-stream infections.
One nuclear submarine would more than cover the additional $4.3 billion in funding for the organization’s current needs, providing:
- 110 million children in 47 countries with pneumococcal vaccines
- 58 million children in 41 countries with rotavirus vaccines
Two nuclear submarines would provide funds sufficient to cover both the $4.3 billion allotted to current programs and the $2.6 billion for future development, which could:
- Double the number of lives saved in GAVI’s first decade (2000-2009)
- Accelerate progress toward the Millennium Development Goal of reducing mortality in children under five by two thirds in 2015
GAVI has made substantial progress since its inception, averting an estimated 5.4 million deaths in the first decade of the 2000s. Estimates indicate that, if financial goals are met, the organization will save more than 23 million lives by 2020 and permanently change the landscape of childhood health.
– Casey Ernstes
Sources: Science Direct, Federation of American Scientists: Congressional Research Service, FAS Strategic Security Blog, GAVI Alliance, USAID, U.S. News World Report, World Nuclear Association
Photo: Wonderful Engineering