House Committee Seeks Design Details Before Navy Signs Battleship Contract

The House Armed Services Committee draft of the National Defense Authorization Act would bar the Navy from signing a construction contract for the lead Trump-class battleship until the Secretary of the Navy certifies that planned weapons systems have reached sufficiently mature technology readiness levels.

The restriction appears in the chairman’s mark released today. It does not specify which technologies must be proven, but references weapons mentioned when President Donald Trump announced the ship in December 2025, including hypersonic missiles, electromagnetic rail guns, and high-powered lasers.

Navy budget documents show a request for about $1 billion in advance procurement and $837 million in research and development funding for fiscal year 2027, with roughly $17 billion sought for procurement of the first ship in fiscal year 2028. The service’s latest shipbuilding plan calls for purchasing 15 battleships over 30 years and delivering the first vessel in 2036.

During a House Armed Services Seapower and Projection Forces subcommittee hearing last week, Rep. Joe Courtney said the requested funding level “defies logic” given the absence of a completed design. Sen. Chris Coons stated that the Navy lacks a design, does not know the final configuration, and is relying on multiple unproven technologies.

Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Daryl Caudle told the House Appropriations Committee earlier this month that a nuclear-powered ship with greater hull volume is needed to carry larger payloads and provide endurance across the Pacific. The draft legislation also adds $500 million for a second Arleigh Burke-class destroyer after the Navy requested one destroyer in its budget submission last month.