Summary and Key Points: Trump’s new National Defense Strategy touts a “Golden Fleet” rebuild anchored by Trump-class battleships led by USS Defiant.
-At 35,000–40,000 tons, 840 feet long, and packed with 128 VLS cells, a railgun, and hypersonic strike weapons, the ship is pitched as a missile-fight survivor and Western Hemisphere deterrent—able to sail with Aegis escorts or patrol the Caribbean and Arctic approaches.
-But price estimates in the double-digit billions, a severe shipyard labor shortfall, and the Navy’s recent procurement scars—from Zumwalt to the Constellation-class—raise doubts.
-With political support uncertain past 2028, the case is to fund R&D first and prove the concept in phases.
128 VLS Cells and Hypersonic Missiles: The Trump-Class Battleship Plan
The U.S. Department of Defense’s National Defense Strategy envisions “America First” and “Peace Through Strength” mantras that portend a new, heightened era of Western Hemisphere defense with strong deterrence measures against China.
The strategy aims to raise the defense industrial base to a new level. “This will require nothing short of a national mobilization—a call to industrial arms,” the document said. The strategy claims that defense manufacturing should be “supercharged.” This will be a “once-in-a-century revival of American industry.”
Golden Fleet Will Be Dominant, According to the Trump Administration
Part of this renewal will be aimed at the U.S. Navy. The “Golden Fleet” concept is an aspiration that echoes President Ronald Reagan’s call for the nation to build 600 warships in the 1980s. President Donald Trump envisions a sleek, powerful frigate inspired by a successful Coast Guard cutter program.
He plans to build new large “corvette” unmanned ships and a substantial armada of logistics vessels to replenish the Golden Fleet. There could even be an escort aircraft carrier that would be easier to deploy and maintain.
Heavy Armaments and More Better-Armored Ships Are Needed
The president’s baby will be the Trump-class battleships. The first will be called the USS Defiant. Both the National Security Strategy and the National Defense Strategy expressed concern that current American ships are not sufficiently heavily armored to survive what I call the “Kinetic Missile Fight.”
China’s ship-killing “Assassin’s Mace” hypersonic and conventional missiles are extremely dangerous. They could keep American vessels out of range, preventing the Navy from deploying carrier strike groups throughout the First Island Chain and South China Sea.
The current number of Navy ships is concerning. There are roughly 280 active U.S. ships, compared with 400 deployed by China. The Americans aim to have 333 operational warships by January 2029.
The Specs for the New Battleships Are Impressive
The Trump-class of battleships will be 100 times more powerful than past dreadnoughts like the Iowa-class. The USS Defiant (BBG-1) will displace 35,000 to 40,000 tons and will be a monumental 840-foot-long guided-missile warship. This mammoth gunboat will have an astounding 128 Mark 41 Vertical Launching System cells.
There are plans for a 32-megajoule electromagnetic railgun and enough room for 12 Conventional Prompt Strike hypersonic missiles. There will also be two 5-inch guns on board with a close-in weapons system for last-ditch anti-missile duties.
Top speed from the ship will be over 30 knots, and this will allow it to keep up with a carrier strike group and add devastating firepower to those flotillas. The Trump-class will also be command-and-control vessels capable of leading offensive missions. The specs are certainly enticing, and the armaments will be devastating to enemies. One of these battleships could bring awesome firepower to a U.S. Marine Corps amphibious landing. The close air support duties will be immense.
Trump-Class Battleship. Image Credit: Creative Commons/White House.
Trump-Class Battleship. Image Credit: Creative Commons/White House Photo.
The Trump-class does not appear to have many anti-aircraft assets onboard, but it will integrate with the Aegis Combat System used on frigates and destroyers that sail with a carrier strike group. The Trump-class could have lasers on board to disable incoming projectiles and aircraft.
Made to Dominate the Western Hemisphere
The USS Defiant will be able to carry a big stick. Another way it can fulfill the needs laid out in the National Defense Strategy is by sailing in the Caribbean and around Greenland to protect the Arctic entrance and deter Russian and Chinese ships in this region. So, the Trump-class is essential for the defense of the Western Hemisphere, in line with the current strategy.
Building the Trump-class won’t be easy. This will be the largest ship the Americans have built in the last 80 years, aside from aircraft carriers. It will take several years to build the USS Defiant, and it may not be ready until the mid to late-2030s.
Unreal Cost Is Projected
Price will be a problem too. A new Congressional Research Service report estimated that the Trump-class will cost around $13.5 billion, more than the USS Gerald R. Ford supercarrier, which was plagued by delays and cost overruns due to its innovative new elevators and launch and recovery systems.
Are There Enough Workers to Build It?
This price tag puts the “Golden” in the Golden Fleet. Additionally, there is a well-documented labor shortage among shipworkers. Where will the workforce come from? New training programs with educated workers, some with science, technology, engineering, and mathematics undergraduate degrees, will be needed, plus an influx of skilled electricians and welders. Shipyards and manufacturers are competing to attract workers, so these positions will be highly paid, but can the industry recruit enough?
As 19FortyFive has reported, Secretary of the Navy John Phelan has called for U.S. shipyards to hire 250,000 more maritime workers over the next decade. That number just doesn’t seem realistic. No industry can find that many new employees these days.
This Is Really More of a ‘Battlecruiser’
Plus, the Trump-class may not even be an authentic battleship and is probably more like a “battlecruiser.” This could mean it will not displace as many tons as envisioned. The 5-inch guns are certainly less powerful than the much larger guns on the Iowa-class. That means bombardment when Marines raid a landing zone is much less effective.
Alaska-Class U.S. Navy Cruiser
Moreover, the Trump-class could be outdated by the time it is built. There will likely be greater demand for smaller, faster uncrewed ships that can swarm a target, and for better use of artificial intelligence and quantum computing to operate targeting and sensor systems.
The Zumwalt-class Cautionary Tale
The Navy had to learn hard lessons from its Zumwalt-class destroyers, which feature a low radar cross-section and distinctive shape. They are finally relevant after all of these years due to the eventual deployment of hypersonic missiles. The Zumwalt-class of only three ships (32 were once planned) has endured headache after headache.
Zumwalt-Class Artist Rendering. Image Credit: Creative Commons.
Zumwalt-Class U.S. Navy Destroyer. Image Credit: Creative Commons.
Zumwalt-Class Destroyer U.S. Navy. Image Credit: Creative Commons.
They ended up costing the Navy around $8 billion each. The 155mm Advanced Gun System has to be classified as a failure. These guns were supposed to fire Long-Range Land Attack Projectiles (LRLAP) up to 83 nautical miles, but the shells cost $1 million each. The Zumwalts’ tumblehome hull could not be updated over time.
The ‘Yuck’ Factor of the Constellation-class
The Navy cancelled the Constellation-class of frigates last year. Only two of the planned ships will be delivered. The service originally wanted 20. Secretary Phelan admitted he needed to change the strategic needs for the new frigate.
Constellation-Class Frigate. Image Credit: Creative Commons.
Constellation-Class Frigate. Image Credit: Creative Commons.
The ships’ design never came together. They grew in weight, and speed was sacrificed. The program was delayed for years because of thousands of engineering changes. There were again supply chain issues and workforce limitations. The Constellation-class became a cautionary tale in how not to conduct a ship-building program.
It Will Need More Political Support
For these reasons, the Trump-class could be doomed. It has political problems from the outset. Trump is only in office for three more years. That may not be enough time to work on this new Golden Fleet exemplified by the USS Defiant. Any ship with the Trump name is going to be scrutinized by the media and Democrats in Congress. The opposition party could take the White House in 2028, and that would assuredly spell doom for the Trump-class.
Changes from Future Elections
Plus, the ship does not appear to have a champion in Congress. Republicans on the two armed services committees have not specifically endorsed the Trump-class, and the Congressional Research Service’s expense estimate will be taken seriously by detractors on Capitol Hill. The Democrats could take control of the House of Representatives and the Senate in 2026. That would remove the momentum for the Trump-class.
Getting a quarter-million new shipyard workers in the coming years seems to be a pipe dream. I could see 25,000 new workers, but that workforce would not be sufficient to build the rest of the Golden Fleet as envisioned.
Give the Golden Fleet a Chance to Spread Its Wings
Alas, the Trump-class could be cancelled. But let’s give the program some room to grow before we throw the concept in the rubbish bin. This is an exciting new ship. Yes, it will be expensive, but it could serve as an experimental technology testbed to assess how the Navy can develop and integrate all weapon systems on future ships.
This makes sense as the critics are already out in force. However, the Trump national security team and the Navy deserve credit for thinking big. New, powerful ships are needed to counter Chinese and Russian capabilities for deterrence and offensive operations.
Give the Trump-class a chance to prove its worth, and take the program step by step, allocating research and development funding first to see whether new capabilities emerge. The United States desperately needs a Golden Fleet with golden ships, and the Trump-class may become a reality in the next decade if critics don’t win the day.
About the Author: Dr. Brent M. Eastwood
Author of now over 3,000 articles on defense issues, Brent M. Eastwood, PhD is the author of Don’t Turn Your Back On the World: a Conservative Foreign Policy and Humans, Machines, and Data: Future Trends in Warfare plus two other books. Brent was the founder and CEO of a tech firm that predicted world events using artificial intelligence. He served as a legislative fellow for US Senator Tim Scott and advised the senator on defense and foreign policy issues. He has taught at American University, George Washington University, and George Mason University. Brent is a former US Army Infantry officer. He can be followed on X @BMEastwood.
