The U.S. Navy is at an “inflection point” amid growing threats from great power rivals and terrorist groups around the world, a key Republican lawmaker said Wednesday morning, and he stressed the U.S. must maintain a strong surface fleet that includes large, small and unmanned vessels.
Rep. Trent Kelly, Mississippi Republican and chairman of the House Armed Services subcommittee on seapower and projection forces, told an audience at the Surface Navy Association’s annual symposium in Arlington, Virginia, that the Navy’s surface fleet, including aircraft carriers and battleships, is as relevant as ever, even in an age of drones and increasingly dangerous anti-ship capabilities wielded by adversaries such as Yemen’s Houthi rebels.
“The proliferation of anti-ship capabilities like Chinese A2/AD (anti-access and area-denial capabilities) and drones from Iranian-backed actors like the Houthis is talked about as a reason the surface fleet is obsolete. I just totally disagree they are obsolete,” Mr. Kelly said in keynote address at the Surface Navy conference. “I think they’re more relevant than ever.”
Mr. Kelly zeroed in on the need for the U.S. to maintain its fleet of aircraft carriers even as it simultaneously develops other vessels, such as new battleships, unmanned surface vessels, and others.
“We don’t need permission to use carriers to project our power around the world,” he said. “Our carriers provide us with an airport, an airfield, anywhere in the world without asking permission from somebody to use it.”
This year’s Surface Navy conference comes at a crucial moment for the service. The Navy’s surface force community is facing major challenges, including persistent maintenance backlogs, insufficient spare parts, a shortage of skilled maintenance personnel, and a struggling industrial base for shipbuilding
At the event, top Navy officials expressed support for the proposed “Trump class” of battleships that President Trump first unveiled last month. Rear Adm. Derek Trinque, the Navy’s director of surface warfare, told an audience Tuesday the ships will “accept more weapons and project more power” than existing naval capabilities, such as the tried-and-true but aging Arleigh Burke-class destroyers.
Mr. Kelly also expressed support for those ships. He specifically said they could be a critical naval component for Mr. Trump’s proposed Golden Dome missile shield.
“I think the Golden Fleet is going to support the Golden Dome, in theory,” Mr. Kelly said.
