US Navy Trump-class battleship program estimated at $275 billion

A report from the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) estimates that the proposed Trump-class nuclear-powered guided missile battleship program will cost approximately $275 billion in 2026 dollars. The plan involves constructing 15 ships between 2028 and 2056, with an average cost exceeding $18 billion per hull.

The lead ship, designated USS Defiant, is projected to cost $23.4 billion. This vessel would be the largest and most heavily armed surface combatant built by the US Navy since World War II, featuring a suite of weaponry including hypersonic missiles, nuclear cruise missiles, large lasers, and rail guns.

Critics and analysts have raised concerns regarding the program's impact on the US industrial base. The plan to replace the canceled DDG(X) program with these battleships while maintaining Arleigh Burke-class destroyer production could more than double the required annual tonnage of large surface combatants by 2035. This shift threatens to exacerbate existing delays at Newport News Shipbuilding, the only certified nuclear-capable shipyard, which is already managing multi-year delays for aircraft carrier and submarine programs.