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Ships

Commentary
South China Sea Spat a Symptom of U.S.-China Jockeying for Advantage
A spate of high-profile diplomatic feuds and military actions related to the South China Sea has raised concern about the direction of U.S.-China relations. Neither country is well positioned politically or economically to engage in a long-term, antagonistic relationship, let alone a major conflict.
Jun 27, 2016
Report
Weighing the Benefits of Longer Operational Cycles for Certain Ships
The Navy is transitioning from a 32-month to a 36-month cycle, but adopting a 72-month cycle could increase the time surface vessels are deployed, allow for multiple deployments between depot availabilities, reduce the number of basic training periods, and achieve some cost savings by removing the crews during the depot maintenance period.
Apr 18, 2016
Commentary
Ten Years After the Safe Port Act, Are America's Ports Secure?
The economic importance and visibility of America's ports make them attractive terrorism targets. Port security has improved, but many of the threats that motivated the Safe Ports Act in 2006 remain, and new dangers have emerged, including cyber threats.
Apr 6, 2016
Commentary
Beijing Ups the Ante in South China Sea Dispute with HQ-9 Deployment
China's recent deployment of HQ-9 missiles to the Paracel Islands signals its determination to consolidate its gains in the South China Sea, regardless of criticism by the United States and its allies.
Mar 29, 2016
Report
Modularity and Flexibility in Future Ship Designs
What are the U.S. Navy's options for extending the service lives of operational ships by adopting the concepts of modularity and flexibility in ship design? Researchers examine the concepts of modularity and flexibility, technological trends, the current geopolitical context, and lessons from past incorporation of new missions and technologies into naval ships.
Mar 3, 2016
Commentary
China's Naval Modernization: Where Is It Headed?
The PLA Navy is expanding its capabilities and operations to reduce vulnerabilities in China's near seas, but also to aggressively support its expanding global ambitions and challenge U.S. leadership in Asia.
Feb 10, 2016
Commentary
Transforming 'Distributed Lethality' Strategy into Action
Distributed lethality offers a more offensive approach to using naval surface forces as potential adversaries acquire naval capabilities designed to control the sea. Translating the concept into action has implications for Navy operations, logistics, finances, and overall strategy.
Feb 8, 2016
Testimony
China's Expeditionary Capabilities and Implications for U.S. Asia Policy
Alongside China's development of many capabilities necessary to conduct missions far from its borders, China's actions to shape the international security environment are accelerating. This poses both opportunities and challenges for U.S. policymakers.
Jan 21, 2016
Report
Assessment of Surface Ship Maintenance Requirements
This report by the National Defense Research Institute (NDRI) examines the impact of the U.S. government's fiscal challenges on the U.S. Navy's surface ship maintenance and operations requirements.
Dec 21, 2015
Commentary
Obama Doubles Down on Maritime Capacity Building in Southeast Asia
By contributing to coast guard capacity building by donating ships and funding, the United States has found an important and politically viable avenue to bolster maritme security to partners and allies in Southeast Asia.
Dec 15, 2015
Commentary
How Will China Respond to Future U.S. Freedom of Navigation Ops?
On October 27, the USS Lassen carried out the first freedom of navigation patrol to challenge China's territorial claims in the South China Sea. In assessing China's potential response to follow-on operations, the extremes of either complete inaction or a military attack can be ruled out.
Oct 29, 2015
Commentary
The Prospective Impact of Airbus Industries on Mobile
Austal USA's operations in Mobile, Alabama have benefited the broader region. Similarly, Airbus's hiring should have a net favorable impact on the region's economy, since the area does not appear to be at or near full employment.
Oct 10, 2015
News Release
China's Military Modernization Increasingly Challenges U.S. Defense Capabilities in Asia
Although China continues to lag behind the United States in terms of aggregate military hardware and operational skills, it has improved its capabilities relative to those of the U.S. in many critical areas. Moreover, China does not need to catch up fully in order to challenge U.S. ability to conduct effective military operations near the Chinese mainland.
Sep 14, 2015
Research Brief
Chinese Threats to U.S. Surface Ships
China has rapidly improved its ability to reliably locate and attack U.S. carrier-strike groups at distances of up to 2,000 kilometers from its coast in a possible military conflict.
Sep 14, 2015
Research Brief
Tallying the U.S.-China Military Scorecard
A set of “scorecards” assesses the relative capabilities of U.S. and Chinese military forces in diverse types of conflict, at varying distances from the Chinese mainland, and at different points in time.
Sep 14, 2015
Report
China's Military Modernization Increasingly Challenges U.S. Defense Capabilities in Asia
Although China continues to lag behind the United States in terms of aggregate military hardware and operational skills, it has improved its capabilities relative to those of the U.S. in many critical areas. Moreover, China does not need to catch up fully in order to challenge U.S. ability to conduct effective military operations near the Chinese mainland.
Sep 14, 2015
Commentary
China's Airfield Construction at Fiery Cross Reef in Context: Catch-Up or Coercion?
Even if China really sees itself as undertaking legitimate activities to protect its rightful interests, it is not surprising that its rival claimants, as well as the United States and other countries in the region, see Beijing's island building activities as efforts to improve China's abilities to bully its neighbors.
Aug 11, 2015
Tool
Allocating Marine Expeditionary Unit Equipment to Minimize Shortfalls: Third Edition
In many cases, the available space on a Marine Expeditionary Unit's ships falls far short of what is needed to transport the full set of required equipment. A RAND-developed software tool was designed to help limit the effects of these shortfalls.
May 21, 2015
Commentary
China's Island-Building Stirs Fears, but Creates Openings for the United States
News of proposed Navy patrols nearby disputed islands claimed by China suggests that the United States is toughening its response to Beijing's assertive territorial claims in the South China Sea.
May 18, 2015
Report
Weighing Options for Australia's Naval Shipbuilding
Australia is examining an enterprise-level naval shipbuilding plan. All three options—sustaining a domestic naval shipbuilding industry, buying ships from foreign shipbuilders, or building ships partially in-country and partially overseas—have complex consequences and trade-offs.
Apr 15, 2015

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RAND Topic:
Ships

Topic Synonyms:
Boats;
Watercraft

Research conducted by

Researcher Spotlight

Jessie Riposo

Director, Disaster Management & Resilience Program, RAND Homeland Security Research Division

Jessie Riposo directs the Disaster Management & Resilience Program (DMR) within the RAND Homeland Security Research Division, and is a senior operations researcher at the RAND Corporation. She focuses on developing and maintaining the capabilities required to conduct research and analysis in…
Emma Westerman

Mathematician

Emma Westerman is a mathematician who specializes in requirements, acquisition, logistics, technology, sustainment, cybersecurity, and lifecycle risk management.

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