The U.S. Navy Wants To Cut Destroyers, Cruisers, Subs, And More

The destroyer Thomas Hudner returns to Bath Iron Works after successfully completing acceptance trials. A new Navy proposal would cut destroyer construction by 40 percent over the next five years. (Bath Iron Works)

Warzone/The Drive: Congress Pushes Back On Stunning Navy Plan To Cut Destroyers, Cruisers, Subs, And More

The service wants to scale back new production of ships and trim existing hulls as part of a new path to reaching a 355-ship fleet.

The U.S. Navy could scale back purchases of new destroyers, attack submarines, frigates, cargo ships, as well as retire early a number of cruisers and littoral combat ships, under a new budget plan taking shape in the Pentagon. The ostensible goal of the proposal is to free up funds for other shipbuilding efforts, including new fleets of unmanned surface and undersea vehicles, but the service is already finding itself in a battle with Congress over funding priorities before it has even finalized its pitch.

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Update #1: Navy To Slash 24 Ships in 2021 Plan, Bolster Unmanned Effort (Breaking Defense)
Update #2: Is the U.S. Navy's Dream of a 355 Ship Fleet Dead? (National Defense)

WNU Editor: Here are more details on what the US Navy wants to cut:

US Navy proposes decommissioning first 4 LCS more than a decade early (Defense News)
Pentagon proposal cuts an FFG(X) and an attack submarine out of the budget (Defense News)
Pentagon proposes big cuts to US Navy destroyer construction, retiring 13 cruisers (Defense News)

Update: Even the US Navy's future aircraft development is being cut .... Amid a heated aircraft carrier debate, the US Navy sees funding slashed for a next-generation fighter (Defense News).