Trump-class battleship
In a press conference in December 2025, U.S. President Donald Trump announced a United States Navy guided-missile warship, to be called the Trump-class battleship. The class is also known as BBG in some Navy documents, and is intended to initially consist of the lead ship USS Defiant and an as-yet unnamed other vessel. If and when commissioned, the class is envisioned as adding a nuclear-capable cruise missile option to the U.S. Navy surface fleet.
History
Background
The U.S. Navy has not had a battleship in commission since the retirement of the last in 1992. There have been no plans for new ones since the cancellation of the in 1943.The retirement of the Iowa class led to a battleship retirement debate on how the Navy should replace their capabilities. The was developed to replace their gunfire support function, but the class was cancelled after only three ships were constructed. The Zumwalt class is currently the largest surface combatant ship operated by the U.S. Navy, although aircraft carriers and amphibious assault ships are larger.
After cessation of Zumwalt procurement, the Navy announced a Large Surface Combatant initiative, which led to a design process for a DDG(X) or Next-Generation Guided-Missile Destroyer to replace each of these types.
Announcement
The announcement of the class comes amidst warnings by U.S. officials that Chinese shipbuilding has surpassed the United States in capacity and output, and is part of the Trump administration's goal to enlarge the U.S. Navy and revitalize the U.S. shipbuilding industry.On 22 December 2025, Donald Trump announced that 2 ships would initially be constructed, with a total of 10 then planned, and eventual plans for "between 20 and 25" as part of a "Golden Fleet". The first ship is planned to be named USS Defiant. U.S. Secretary of the Navy John Phelan stated that the ships are planned to carry conventional guns and nuclear-armed cruise missiles. Trump stated that the ships are planned to be domestically built at the Hanwha Philly Shipyard, owned by South Korean conglomerate Hanwha Group.
The Department of Defense states that the BBG program will replace the DDG one, incorporating technology and capabilities from the latter into the former. According to the navy, ships of the class are planned to include, as part of their primary battery, a Surface Launch Cruise Missile Nuclear system, a 12-cell Conventional Prompt Strike hypersonic missile system, and a 128-cell Mark 41 vertical launching system. A secondary battery is planned to consist of a 32-megajoule railgun, two 5-inch/62-caliber guns, and a pair of either 300 or 600-kilowatt laser weapons. A defensive battery is planned with two RAM launchers, four Mark 38 30 mm [machine gun system], four ODIN lasers, and two anti-drone systems. The ships are also planned to have an enclosed hangar for VTOL aircraft such as helicopters, the V-22 Osprey and other, future vertical-lift manned and unmanned aircraft. However, the United States Naval institute say that the lasers, nuclear cruise missiles and the railgun are potential additions to the base design, which they stated as including the same number of VLS and CPS missile cells and "five-inch guns".
Megawatt-class lasers are a possible upgrade.
Reactions
Design
Analysts commenting on the preliminary Trump-class design expressed doubts that the ships will enter service because they have not been funded and their unique and unprecedented design will make development costly and slow.The classification of the Trump-class ship as a battleship has been questioned. Mark Cancian with the Center for Strategic and International Studies wrote that the term has historically been used for warships with large guns, such as 16-inch guns, and heavy armor, which Trump-class would lack, and that the ship's profile is more typical of a guided-missile "battlecruiser" like Russia's. However, according to the U.S. Naval Institute, the definition of the term "battleship" has evolved over the ages, from wooden ships with many guns, through to the 20th-century usage of high-caliber gunned ships with heavy armor. The ship is meant to survive in a fleet battle, and thus armor is not definitional to the core of the battleship. The importance of the large gun debate depends upon whether the gun is the most important component of the ship's firepower.
CNN analyst Stephen Collinson states that the procurement of the Trump class would likely revive the battleship retirement debate. Cancian writes that the ship "will never sail" as its high cost will prompt "A future administration cancel the program before the first ship hits the water".