The US Navy faces serious issues, including delays in ship construction, refits, and maintenance taking longer than scheduled, and reliability issues with its amphibious assault ships.
The United States Navy’s future USS John F. Kennedy (CVN-79) is running two years behind schedule, and the second Gerald R. Ford-class nuclear-powered supercarrier is not expected to join the fleet until at least March 2027. Additionally, the next Ford-class carrier, the future USS Enterprise (CVN-80), has had its delivery date pushed back from September 2029 to July 2030.
Although many of the delays with CVN-79 are still due in no small part to the global COVID-19 pandemic, which shut down production and subsequently resulted in supply chain challenges, other issues include resolving bugs with the Advanced Arresting Gear and Advanced Weapons Elevator, two critical systems on the warship.
The nuclear-powered supercarriers are not the only US Navy flattops facing lengthy delays.
According to the newly released Department of Defense (DoD) budget documents for Fiscal Year 2026 (FY26), which begins on October 1, 2025, the next two America-class “big deck” amphibious assault ships (LHAs), the future USS Bougainville (LHA-8) and future USS Fallujah (LHA-9), are now running a year behind schedule.
Worker shortages at HII’s Ingalls Shipbuilding facility in Pascagoula, Mississippi, continued to face “shipyard labor challenges,” the budget document noted. LHA-9 is now expected to be delivered in September 2030, a year later than last year’s projection of September 2029.
“The Navy and HII-Ingalls are continuously working to ensure Bougainville and Fallujah will be delivered with all the capabilities our warfighters need as early as possible,” a Navy spokesperson told USNI News in a statement.
The most recent amphibious assault ship to be delivered to the US Navy, the America-class USS Tripoli (LHA-7), also experienced several months of delays.
The US Navy Has Very Few Flattops Available
The delays could impact the US Navy’s ability to project power globally, especially as the oldest nuclear-powered supercarrier, USS Nimitz (CVN-68), is scheduled to be retired next year. Instead of having 11 aircraft carriers in service, the US Navy will have to make do with just 10. However, the issue is compounded by the fact that the Refueling and Complex Overhaul (RCOH) of the USS John C. Stennis (CVN-74) is running late.
Work on the USS John C. Stennis was supposed to be finished by August 2025, but it may not be completed until the end of 2026, at which point the ship will be handed back to the US Navy. Moreover, the USS Harry S. Truman (CVN-75) will next undergo the RCOH process, sidelining the carrier for several years.
However, it could be worse.
In 2019, the US Navy had considered retiring CVN-75 decades ahead of schedule to cut costs, saving $30 billion over the course of 25 years, and reducing the number of nuclear-powered supercarriers to just 10. However, Congressional lawmakers were deeply opposed to the plan, which President Donald Trump blocked during his first term in office. The Navy will now have 10 carriers, but without any corresponding savings.
The US Navy Is Facing a Shortage of Amphibious Assault Ships
The sea service also has fewer amphibious assault ships in service, after the July 2020 devastating fire on the Wasp-class USS Bonhomme Richard (LHD-6) while the warship was undergoing repairs in San Diego. The fire caused an estimated $2 billion in damage, resulting in the US Navy’s decision to decommission and scrap the warship.
The USS Wasp (LHD-1) began its Selected Restricted Availability (SRA) for maintenance and modernization at BAE Systems Norfolk Ship Repair in March of this year, and will not be back in service until at least February 2026. In addition, the USS Bataan (LHD-5) entered dry dock last November, and work on that amphibious assault ship is now on track to be completed by May 2026.
The issue is not just the number of flattops that are in service, but also their actual ability to deploy when needed. A report from the Government Accountability Office (GAO) issued in December warned that the US Navy’s amphibious assault ships had a 46 percent readiness rate, which falls below the required 50 percent rate for deployment.
Compounding the issue was that a third Wasp-class flattop could also need to be sidelined due to ongoing mechanical problems. In April 2024, the USS Boxer (LHD-4) experienced an engineering issue with its rudder, forcing it to return to San Diego for repairs shortly after deploying. At that point, the 843-foot-long warship had spent more time undergoing repairs than deployed. The issues were “resolved” when the ship returned to service last July, but it was essentially a stopgap until it could undergo a more significant SRA.
Taken as a whole, the US Navy has serious flattop problems it needs to resolve. Construction is running late, refits and maintenance are taking longer than scheduled, and the reliability of its amphibious assault ships remains a significant concern.
About the Author: Peter Suciu
Peter Suciu has contributed over 3,200 published pieces to more than four dozen magazines and websites over a thirty-year career in journalism. He regularly writes about military hardware, firearms history, cybersecurity, politics, and international affairs. Peter is also a Contributing Writer for Forbes and Clearance Jobs. He is based in Michigan. You can follow him on Twitter: @PeterSuciu. You can email the author: [email protected].
Image: Wikimedia Commons.
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