CIMSEC – The Surface Fleet must help maximize the Marine Corps’ ability to execute its mission from the sea. That mission remains the foundation of the amphibious force, and every institutional decision surrounding amphibious command must be judged—without stint or reference to parochialism—against that standard.

USNI News – American forces disabled three merchant ships in the Gulf of Oman this week that were allegedly violating a U.S. naval blockade of Iran.

CIMSEC – In 2022, Congress established the independent National Commission on the Future of the Navy to conduct two overarching studies, one examining naval force structure and the other focused on shipbuilding and innovation. The former will recommend the size and composition of the Navy, while the latter will identify opportunities to better integrate advanced technologies into shipbuilding, new construction, and repair shipyards. China now possesses the world’s largest navy by ship count, and its shipbuilding capacity vastly exceeds that of the United States. Chinese shipyards are producing warships faster than American yards can repair them. China has spent a generation building a fleet capable of contesting sea control and converting industrial scale into military power, while the United States has allowed its shipbuilding capacity, naval industrial base, and force structure to deteriorate over the same period. The Commission is required to submit an unclassified report in 2027, and its recommendations could shape American naval power for years to come. To fulfill its mandate, the Commission must resolve five foundational issues.

CIMSEC – Four options for fleet composition have gained purchase within the U.S. Navy.

USNI News – The Pentagon’s planned energy depot in the Philippines will be able to refuel the U.S. Navy’s guided-missile destroyers and Combat Logistics Force ships, according to new documents.

Naval News – The Pentagon is looking to procure dozens of unmanned surface vessels (USV) to deliver to support U.S. Army logistics operations under contested environments in the Indo-Pacific. 

The War Zone – The U.S. Navy’s top drone task force in the Middle East only started operating the Corsair uncrewed surface vessels in March.

The War Zone – Concerns are building the Trump class battleship will exacerbate delays in critical aircraft carrier and submarine construction.

USNI News – U.S. Indo-Pacific Command forces interdicted and boarded a stateless vessel in the Indian Ocean late Thursday as part of the expanded U.S. blockade of Iranian ports.

The War Zone – HELIOS is the only laser able to down drones installed on an active Navy warship, and putting it in a container would open up new deployment possibilities.

CSIS – The 39-day bombing and air defense campaign against Iran depleted inventories of key U.S. munitions stockpiles, as a previous CSIS analysis detailed. The United States has enough munitions for any plausible scenario in the Iran war, but the depleted inventories have created a window of vulnerability for a potential Western Pacific conflict. The time needed to rebuild those inventories has thus become a major concern.

Naval News – L3Harris is pushing forward with production of its Iver4 900 autonomous undersea vehicle (AUV) under a previously unknown Defense Innovation Unit effort that is looking to deliver a torpedo tube launch and recovery (TTL&R) autonomous drone to the U.S. Navy’s attack submarine fleet.

USNI News – Spreading the construction of the Trump-class battleship across several different manufacturing locations is key to the Navy’s current plan to build the almost three-football-field-long warship, a service official said this week.

Defense News – Operation Epic Fury may have strengthened the case for directed energy weapons, but the U.S. Navy’s dream of putting “a laser on every ship” may take significantly longer than expected to realize.

Breaking Defense – The Navy doesn’t have the bandwidth to escort commercial ships through the Strait of Hormuz, according to the Navy’s top officer.

The War Zone – The U.S. Navy has placed directed energy systems on nine surface combatants and is looking to expand testing and deployment of similar systems across the fleet.

USNI News – Balikatan 2026 was a rehearsal for the defense of the Philippines amid a “dangerous security environment,” U.S. Indo-Pacific Command chief Adm. Samuel Paparo said at the conclusion of the largest iteration of the drills held to date.

Naval News – The Pentagon’s order of over 10,000 Low-Cost Containerized Missiles (LCCM) has the potential to expand Washington’s arsenal of anti-ship munitions, with designs from the five awarded defense contractors capable of accommodating or planned to incorporate dedicated maritime-launch and strike variants. 

War on the Rocks – Investing in medium autonomous warships, lower-cost long-range munitions, and surface drones is not about affordably generating the volume and diversity of effects necessary to survive and fight in a contested environment. The Navy should treat these capabilities not as adjuncts to the existing fleet but as central components of future maritime power.

The Barents Observer – Newly developed high-speed autonomous surface vessels have been seen operating in the fjord outside Ramsund Naval Base during an exercise that runs until 24 May.

CIMSEC – The U.S. Navy remains intent on using its high-end platforms for sea denial. To its credit, it is developing the kinds of unmanned systems that are ideally suited for this mission, but only at too slow a pace. To optimize its force structure and accelerate the development of technology, the U.S. Navy should instead commit to a strategy of customized, low-end sea denial coupled with high-end global maritime punishment, and then tailor its doctrine, tactics, and weapons systems to each mission.

Naval News – Under the U.S. Navy’s released shipbuilding plan as apart of the Future Year Defense Program (FYDP), the U.S. Navy’s surface force will receive a major reshuffle in it’s structure, targeted towards fielding continually advanced surface ship based capabilities and increasing industrial output.

The War Zone – The Chief of Naval Operations says giving up on nuclear-powered surface combatants was one of the worst decisions his service has ever made.

CIMSEC – The real challenge remains the development of the next-generation surface combatant—a ship with the size, power, and growth margin to accommodate future weapons and sensors. That search has eluded the Navy for decades. The Future Frigate is not that answer. Achieving it will require a clean-sheet design, sustained discipline, and a willingness to align ambition with technical reality. Until then, the frigate program represents not a destination, but a holding action.