Overview
- The presidential memorandum, which Trump signed Thursday, directs the Navy to fit the next Ford-class carrier, the USS Doris Miller, with steam catapults and asks the Pentagon for implementation plans in roughly 60 days.
- The memo also directs creation of a fifth public shipyard and a component repair center to expand maintenance capacity for carriers and submarines.
- General Atomics and other industry sources say reverting the Gerald R. Ford design will force major redesign work, could cost billions, and would introduce significant schedule and integration risks because EMALS installations on the Doris Miller are already well under way.
- EMALS is designed to launch aircraft faster, require far fewer sailors to operate, and reduce maintenance compared with steam catapults, and defenders warn a reversion could blunt those operational advantages and give rivals room to catch up.
- The order reflects long-running political pressure from the president on carrier technology and immediately raised questions for Congress and the Navy about budget trade-offs, program delays, and how to staff and sustain a larger public shipyard system.