The Navy envisions buying 15 so-called “Trump-class” battleships over the next three decades, a number that is five times greater than previously disclosed, which would dramatically expand President Donald Trump’s proposed “Golden Fleet.”
The Navy had previously said it would buy three of the battleships, with the first arriving in 2036. But its newly released 30-year shipbuilding plan shows a longer-term commitment to the costly vessels, with more than a dozen on tap through 2055.
Budget documents projected that the first next-generation guided-missile battleship, the USS Defiant, would cost about $17.5 billion, with construction beginning in 2028 and delivery projected for 2036. Spending on the first three ships was due to reach $43.5 billion through 2031.
The new, longer-range blueprint envisions a total fleet of 15 BBG(X) vessels through 2055. They have been dubbed “Trump-class” ships by the White House.
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Long-range Navy shipbuilding plans are often considered aspirational and can shift dramatically between presidential administrations and be altered based on changing congressional priorities. The expensive program named for Trump could be a target for Democrats if their party regains control in Congress or the White House.
Trump first unveiled the warship concept in December at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida, describing them as “the fastest, the biggest, and by far 100 times more powerful than any battleship ever built.”
The Navy’s latest plan also confirms for the first time that the vessels would be nuclear-powered. The service said the ships are designed to provide increased endurance, higher speed and the capacity to support advanced weapons systems.
The administration has cast the proposal as part of a broader naval buildup dubbed the “Golden Fleet,” a nod to Theodore Roosevelt’s Great White Fleet, as a symbol of American maritime strength.
Acting Navy Secretary Hung Cao wrote in the new plans that the U.S. would “launch the modern successor to that vision” by building “a larger, more lethal, and more balanced fleet.”
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