President Trump signed a national security memorandum on Aug. 13, 2026 directing the Navy to abandon the Electromagnetic Aircraft Launch System (EMALS) on future Gerald R. Ford-class carriers and revert to steam catapults starting with USS Doris Miller (CVN-81). The directive requires the Defense Department to deliver an implementation plan within 60 days and will reshape carrier production timelines and supply chain requirements.
What's happening
- Trump's memorandum ends EMALS use on Ford-class carriers starting with USS Doris Miller, the fourth carrier in the class, while preserving EMALS on three already-built or under-construction ships: USS Gerald R. Ford (2017), USS John F. Kennedy (2027), and USS Enterprise (2030).
- The Navy must reactivate steam catapult production lines that shut down in 2009 after USS George H.W. Bush was commissioned, as the last 10 Nimitz-class carriers used steam systems.
- DoD has 60 days to deliver a plan detailing timeline and resources needed for the design and production changes to USS Doris Miller and potentially six additional Ford-class carriers planned for coming decades.
- EMALS requires only 2 crew members to operate versus 12 for steam catapults; Ford operates 160 sorties per day versus 120 for Nimitz-class carriers with steam systems.
Why it matters
- Restarting steam catapult manufacturing demands massive capital investment and extended supply chain lead times, delaying Ford-class carrier delivery and straining the industrial base with work halted since 2009.
- Changing carrier design at this stage risks pushing USS Doris Miller delivery into the late 2030s, exacerbating Navy fleet readiness already at its lowest point in decades.
- Ford-class carriers operate 160 versus 120 sorties daily, meaning three EMALS carriers equal four Nimitz-class carriers in launch capacity; reverting to steam reduces operational efficiency across the future fleet.
- Ford saves the Navy $100 million annually in operating costs compared to Nimitz-class carriers through electrical systems and smaller crew requirements, a savings lost with steam catapult retrofit.
Going deeper
- EMALS magnets push and pull the shuttle with calibrated precision for different aircraft types and weights, while steam catapults jerk the aircraft down the deck, causing greater wear on both aircraft and launch systems.
- Recent Ford deployment produced 120-130 percent of Nimitz-class sorties, validating the system's advertised performance, according to Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Daryl Caudle.
- Congress, including Senate Armed Services Committee Chair Sen. Roger Wicker (R-Miss.), opposes the reversal, citing overwhelming Pentagon and Congressional support for EMALS, which is developed partly in Tupelo, Mississippi.
The intrigue
- The Trump administration cites complex Ford-class designs and iterative construction delays as justification, but critics argue that steam catapult integration introduces even greater design complexity and delay than keeping EMALS.
- Restarting a dormant supply chain from 2009 with no active production experience may introduce cost overruns and technical challenges absent from current EMALS operations on three operational or near-ready carriers.
The fine print
- The memorandum does not require removal of EMALS already installed or under construction on USS Gerald R. Ford, USS John F. Kennedy, or USS Enterprise.
- Implementation plan due within 60 days; actual timeline and resource requirements for design and production changes unknown until DoD submits plan.
- Six additional Ford-class carriers in the long-range plan would convert to steam under the directive, expanding scope and cost beyond USS Doris Miller alone.
Source: stripes.com · Aug 24, 2026 · Drafted with Claude, reviewed by Industrial Base Alpha.