WASHINGTON (AP) 鈥� The U.S. Navy is of one of its most high-tech and expensive warships 鈥� the Ford-class aircraft carrier 鈥� and the service’s top boss is not ruling out canceling future versions of its design.
Navy Secretary John Phelan told reporters Tuesday that the review, which should be complete next month, was 鈥渁 prudent and practical” move aimed at examining 鈥渢he costs of the designs and the systems to make sure that they make sense and they have all the systems and requirements that we want going forward.鈥�
The review of the design comes after years of criticism from President Donald Trump, who has taken issue with some of the technology on this type of aircraft carrier, including its magnetic catapults, which he claimed 鈥渄idn’t work鈥� during .
When Phelan was asked if the review could lead to the cancellation of future Ford-class aircraft carriers, he told reporters only that 鈥渋t鈥檚 too early to say, but we will have carriers.鈥�
The USS Gerald R. Ford has been on a of more than 300 days 鈥� since June 2025 鈥� that has seen the world鈥檚 largest aircraft carrier participate in two key military actions by the Trump administration: the and the .
Navy budget documents made public Tuesday did not list Ford-class aircraft carriers among the ships that the Navy planned to buy. The documents instead simply said 鈥渁ircraft carrier.鈥� Meanwhile, other ships 鈥� such as the Columbia-class submarines and Arleigh Burke-class destroyers 鈥� were described by class name.
A Navy statement provided Tuesday praised the Ford-class carrier as 鈥渁 battle-proven design鈥� that has been able to launch aircraft at a faster rate than the older Nimitz-class carriers and offers increased 鈥渃ombat power and ability to maintain high-tempo global strike operations” in three parts of the world.
Phelan, however, told reporters that he wanted to review that data.
鈥淚 go to the Ronald Reagan school of 鈥榯rust and verify,鈥欌�� Phelan said, before adding that the review would look into the carrier’s ability to launch and retrieve aircraft.
The ship’s magnetic catapults are a key component in giving the Ford a leg up from the older Nimitz ships in launching aircraft. They also put less stress on planes, require less maintenance and reduce the ship’s need for fresh water compared with the older steam-powered variants.
The Navy has three other Ford-class carriers under construction: the USS John F. Kennedy, the USS Enterprise and the USS Dorie Millier.
Phelan said the review will examine the next two carriers 鈥� named USS William Jefferson Clinton and USS George W. Bush by the Biden administration 鈥� which have been planned but not contracted.
Trump, meanwhile, has rolled out a , estimated to cost more than $17 billion 鈥� or $4 billion more than the Ford-class carriers. The Navy does not plan to pay for the first ship in the new class, the USS Defiant, until the 2028 budget year.
Phelan told reporters the current cost for the Trump-class ship is an 鈥渆arly initial estimate鈥� and he expected the cost to fall as the design is refined and further ships are built. He also didn’t rule out the ship being powered by a nuclear reactor, which would significantly drive up its costs.
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