Blumenthal Leads Call for Trump to Reverse Costly Directive Restoring Outdated Technology on Aircraft Carriers

[WASHINGTON, D.C.] - U.S. Senator Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, today called on Donald Trump to reverse a recent national security memorandum directing the Department of Defense to replace electromagnetic catapults with steam-powered systems on future Gerald R. Ford-class aircraft carriers. In a letter signed by fellow members of the Armed Services Committee-U.S. Senators Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), Mazie Hirono (D-HI), Mark Kelly (D-AZ), and Tim Kaine (D-VA)-Blumenthal and the Senators raised concerns that the President's costly and ill-conceived redesigns of aircraft carriers would endanger servicemembers and leave aircraft carriers less secure.

"Catapults are central to an aircraft carrier's ability to project airpower around the world, launching aircraft from the flight deck using either pressurized steam or, in newer systems, electrical power and magnetic fields. The Navy moved to the Electromagnetic Aircraft Launch System (EMALS) because it offers more precise control over aircraft launches, can accommodate a wider range of aircraft, and reduces maintenance and manpower requirements. The Navy has spent years improving this technology and has now conducted tens of thousands of successful launches," the Senators wrote.

The Senators continued, "Your plan to revert to steam-powered systems is not feasible. The Ford class was designed around electromagnetic catapults, while steam requires a fundamentally different infrastructure. With the Doris Miller already under construction and its electromagnetic launch equipment reportedly nearly 50 percent complete, your directive threatens to impose significant new costs and delays on a carrier program already critical to meeting the Navy's global commitments."

The Senators raised concerns about the President's pattern of personally prescribing the design of some of the military's most complex weapons systems: "These projects are planned years in advance and go through intense scrutiny. Your constant interference in them risks wasting time, taxpayer dollars, and the safety of our warfighters. Our servicemembers and their families deserve to know that the equipment they receive is driven by operational requirements, not your whim."

"Our aircraft carriers are among the most complex weapons systems ever built, and decisions about their design will shape the Navy's combat power for decades. Changes of this magnitude should be driven by the operational requirements of the fleet, the judgment of Navy engineers and warfighters, and rigorous assessments of cost, schedule, and capability-not the personal preference of any President," the Senators concluded.

The full text of the Senators' letter is available here and below.

Dear Mr. President,

We write to express serious concerns regarding your August 13 national security memorandum directing the Department of Defense to replace electromagnetic catapults with steam-powered systems on future Gerald R. Ford-class aircraft carriers, beginning with the USS Doris Miller (CVN-81). At precisely the moment the Navy is struggling to meet growing demands for aircraft carriers around the world, you are ordering costly and ill-conceived redesigns of the future carrier fleet.

Catapults are central to an aircraft carrier's ability to project airpower around the world, launching aircraft from the flight deck using either pressurized steam or, in newer systems, electrical power and magnetic fields. The Navy moved to the Electromagnetic Aircraft Launch System (EMALS) because it offers more precise control over aircraft launches, can accommodate a wider range of aircraft, and reduces maintenance and manpower requirements. The Navy has spent years improving this technology and has now conducted tens of thousands of successful launches.

Your plan to revert to steam-powered systems is not feasible. The Ford class was designed around electromagnetic catapults, while steam requires a fundamentally different infrastructure. With the Doris Miller already under construction and its electromagnetic launch equipment reportedly nearly 50 percent complete, your directive threatens to impose significant new costs and delays on a carrier program already critical to meeting the Navy's global commitments.

Most concerning, this directive is not an isolated instance. Your directive follows a growing pattern of personally prescribing the design of some of the military's most complex weapons systems, including a new class of battleships, a twin-engine version of the F-35, and now steam catapults aboard aircraft carriers. These projects are planned years in advance and go through intense scrutiny. Your constant interference in them risks wasting time, taxpayer dollars, and the safety of our warfighters. Our servicemembers and their families deserve to know that the equipment they receive is driven by operational requirements, not your whim.

We therefore request answers to the following questions:

1. What technical, engineering, operational, and cost analyses informed your August 13 directive? Before it was issued, did the Chief of Naval Operations, Secretary of the Navy, NAVSEA, NAVAIR, or other Navy technical authorities recommend replacing the electromagnetic catapults with steam?
2. What is the Navy's current estimate of the total cost and schedule impact of redesigning CVN-81 to incorporate steam catapults, including engineering and redesign costs, equipment already procured or under contract, contract modifications, and potential construction delays?
3. How would replacing electromagnetic catapults with steam affect the operational capabilities, including sortie generation, maintenance requirements, and its ability to launch the Navy's planned future carrier air wing, including unmanned aircraft?
4. What impact would any delay to future carriers have on the Navy's ability to generate sufficient aircraft carrier presence to meet projected global operational requirements, particularly given the increasingly extended deployments already being required of the existing carrier fleet?

Our aircraft carriers are among the most complex weapons systems ever built, and decisions about their design will shape the Navy's combat power for decades. Changes of this magnitude should be driven by the operational requirements of the fleet, the judgment of Navy engineers and warfighters, and rigorous assessments of cost, schedule, and capability - not the personal preference of any President.

Sincerely,

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