Naval News – Statements by U.S. Navy Rear Admiral (RADM) Derek Trinque, the Director of Surface Warfare (N96) at the 2026 Surface Navy Symposium reveal the U.S. Navy’s intentions to spread the hypersonic Conventional Prompt Strike (CPS) missiles throughout the surface fleet.

Breaking Defense – After rounds of prototyping, the Navy is ready to deploy two of its medium-sized drone boats this year and even integrate one with a carrier strike group, according to a service official.

Defense News – U.S. President Donald Trump calls the vessel a new class of “battleship” graced by his own name, but China just calls the U.S. Navy’s latest concept a larger and “easier target” for its growing array of anti-ship drones and missiles.

Naval News – During the Future Fleet Panel at SNA 2026, Chris Miller, the Executive Director at Naval Sea Systems Command, and Rear Admiral Derek Trinque, the U.S Navy Director of Surface Warfare (N96), Rear Admiral Brian Metcalf, and Rear Admiral Peter Small went in depth regarding the newly unveiled BBG(X) Trump-Class Battleships.

The War Zone – The Navy is pushing back on concerns about the built-in capabilities of FF(X) frigates, including the lack of a vertical launch system array.

The War Zone – As the U.S. is reportedly moving at least one and perhaps more aircraft carrier strike groups to the Middle East ahead of a potential future attack on Iran, open-source tracking is beginning to show some U.S. Air Force assets may be heading that way as well.

Defense News – U.S. Navy leaders speaking at a military conference this week outlined what they described as the strategic opportunities of the recently announced Trump-class battleships and why the service is embracing the development.

Naval News – General Atomics is holding discussions with the U.S. government regarding the role of railguns on the Trump-class guided-missile battleships. 

Naval News – During Surface Navy 2026’s Future Fleet Panel hosted by Mr. Chris Miller, Executive Director at NAVSEA, and featuring Rear Admiral (RADM) Derek Trinque, the U.S Navy’s Surface Warfare Director (N96), new details surrounding the U.S Navy’s FF(X) program were unveiled.

The War Zone – The USS Gerald R. Ford has been on cruise since June and the Navy’s top officer does not want to send it to the Middle East on extended deployment.

The War Zone – The U.S. Navy’s top officer wants directed energy weapons to become the go-to choice for the crews of American warships when faced with close-in threats. He also said that more powerful megawatt-class lasers should not be seen as “beyond” the capabilities that could be found on the future Trump class warships. 

USNI News – New robotic autonomous systems and forward-deployed forces are key to the Navy’s emerging hedge force concept the service is adopting to supplement the tasks of the existing fleet.

Navy Lookout – The US Navy says it wants to terminate the Constellation-class frigate programme after years of design instability, opting instead for the procurement of a simpler ship based on the US Coast Guard’s Legend-class cutter. Here, we consider the crisis in American naval procurement and the implications of the switch from frigate to cutter.

Breaking Defense – Tough choices about whether to put hypersonic weapons or big guns on the Navy’s latest destroyer were one of the factors that put the sea service on a path to develop a new battleship, the Navy’s director of surface warfare said today.

USNI News – To build the Navy’s planned Golden Fleet, U.S. naval shipbuilders must hire a quarter million shipbuilders over the next decade, Secretary of the Navy John Phelan said Tuesday.

War on the Rocks – Trent Hone writes that to Japanese leaders, Yamato was more than a ship. It was a symbol of national power, technological prowess, and imperial ambitions. That symbolism has returned to American politics. President Donald Trump recently announced plans for a new U.S. Navy battleship, reviving a type of warship the Navy abandoned generations ago. Evaluating that proposal requires separating two distinct questions that Yamato itself embodies: whether the battleship still makes operational sense in modern naval warfare, and whether it retains political and symbolic value even after its military utility has passed.

National Interest – James Holmes writes that naval theorist Alfred Thayer Mahan would likely be baffled by Trump’s war on drugs—but would be instantly familiar with his broader geopolitical motives in the Caribbean.

Naval News – The new dry dock, designated “Atlas” was announced as received by General Dynamics Electric Boat’s primary shipyard in Groton, Connecticut. The primary purpose of Atlas is targeted towards supporting the construction of the Columbia-class of Ballistic Missile Submarines (SSBN) currently under construction.

CIMSEC – To win the fight against a peer adversary, the navy’s surface warfare officer (SWO) community must display a level of warfighting proficiency – one of excellence – not yet seen in many years. The collisions of 2017 and continued near misses and actual mishaps since, such as the grounding of USS Howard (DDG 83) in 2023 and the Harry S. Truman (HST) Carrier Strike Group (CSG) friendly fire incident in 2024, reveal that the surface force lacks a high level of operating proficiency, in terms of both shiphandling and tactical skill. However, while sweeping reforms were swiftly implemented to increase shiphandling proficiency, the SWO community has not shown the same kind of fervor to implement the sweeping changes needed to dramatically increase tactical proficiency.

CIMSEC – While keeping the generalist approach, the surface navy should still continue to create more opportunities to specialize — to build more tactical and technical proficiency — across an officer’s career.

USNI News – Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, are in U.S. custody following his capture in the capital of Caracas early Saturday morning, President Donald Trump said during a midday Saturday press conference.

ArmyRecognition – The U.S. Navy has completed a Service Life Extension Program refueling overhaul for USS Cheyenne (SSN 773) at Portsmouth Naval Shipyard, marking the first submarine to undergo an SLEP overhaul. The milestone extends Cheyenne’s service life beyond 44 years and highlights the Navy’s strategy to ease attack submarine shortages by sustaining existing platforms.

(Thanks to Alain)

U.S. Congressional Research Service – Ronald O’Rourke analyses this new US Navy program.

The War Zone – With Trump class ship construction many years off, the survival of a program to build such large and expensive warships is even more questionable.

The War Zone – The USS Defiant would be the first Trump class battleship, but major questions remain about affordability and logic of such a massive design.