{"id":9830,"date":"2026-08-14T18:35:33","date_gmt":"2026-08-14T18:35:33","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/relocationtimess.com\/?p=9830"},"modified":"2026-08-14T18:35:33","modified_gmt":"2026-08-14T18:35:33","slug":"very-outdated-trumps-directive-to-revert-to-steam-catapults-on-new-aircraft-carrier-baffles-naval-experts","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/relocationtimess.com\/?p=9830","title":{"rendered":"\u2018Very outdated\u2019: Trump\u2019s directive to revert to steam catapults on new aircraft carrier baffles naval experts"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\n President Donald Trump has directed the US Navy to scrap the modern electromagnetic launch system on an upcoming aircraft carrier and instead revert to an older, steam-powered catapult method \u2014 potentially adding billions to its price tag and delaying its deployment into the late 2030s.\n <\/p>

Read more Trump says USS Lincoln\u2019s deployment was \u2018not nearly long enough\u2019<\/a><\/p>\n

\n The directive, outlined in a White House memo and fact sheet released Thursday, orders Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth to submit a plan within 60 days to install the catapult systems on on a carrier being built that is slated to take on the name the USS Doris Miller.\n <\/p>\n

\n While the White House argues the move will \u201cfix critical long-term issues,\u201d naval experts tell CNN the sudden shift is highly unusual.\n <\/p>\n

\n The newest US aircraft carrier, the USS Gerald R. Ford, was built with an electromagnetic launching system known as EMALS. However, the US Navy\u2019s 10 older carriers, the Nimitz class, still rely on steam-powered catapults.\n <\/p>\n

\n Bryan Clark, a senior fellow at the Hudson Institute, added that the move would require the USS Doris Miller, which is already under construction, to be redesigned. The cost of that, he told CNN, \u201cwill probably be into the billions\u201d and it could delay the carrier \u2014 which was expected to be in service around 2034 \u2014 \u201cuntil the end of the next decade.\u201d\n <\/p>\n

\n The electromagnetic system is similar to a high-speed rail train, making it \u201ca lot simpler,\u201d according to Clark. Meanwhile, the steam catapult has a lot more parts, such as valves, pressure regulators and pistons, he said.\n <\/p>\n

\n \u201cThe electromagnetic ones have proven themselves to be easier to operate and less expensive in terms of personnel and maintenance. So the Navy has saved $100 million a year on the Ford class carrier,\u201d Clark said.\n <\/p>\n

\n When reached for comment, a White House spokesperson directed CNN to the fact sheet, which argues that the memorandum aims to \u201cfix critical long-term issues in Navy shipbuilding and ship repair programs.\u201d\n <\/p>\n

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\"An<\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n\n<\/div>\n
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\nAn F\/A-18F Super Hornet aircraft lands on the deck of USS Gerald R. Ford while operating in support of Operation Epic Fury on March 2, 2026 in the Mediterranean Sea.<\/span>\n<\/div>\n
From US Navy\/Getty Images<\/figcaption>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

\n Chris Cavas, a veteran journalist and the host of a podcast on naval issues who said he\u2019s been on launches that have used EMALS and steam catapult, argued that the memo \u201cis very old thinking, very outdated.\u201d\n <\/p>

Read more Trump\u2019s Kennedy Center and ballroom fixations are political malpractice for the GOP<\/a><\/p>\n

\n \u201cI can tell you firsthand, you can feel the difference and the difference is that it\u2019s smoother,\u201d Cavas said of the electromagnetic system. \u201cIt\u2019s much less stress on the aircraft.\u201d\n <\/p>\n

\n Cavas and Clark also said that the Navy now faces the logistical issue of finding a manufacturer of steam catapults. Cavas told CNN that while EMALS are contracted, the Navy used to build steam catapults itself.\n <\/p>\n

\n \u201cThey haven\u2019t had to make new steam catapults since the George H. W. Bush,\u201d Cavas said, referring to the aircraft carrier that entered service in 2009. \u201cThat\u2019s a long time ago and all that infrastructure is gone.\u201d\n <\/p>\n

\n Similarly, Clark said, \u201cNobody builds them anymore. There\u2019s no steam catapult manufacturers in the \u2026 US anymore so they\u2019d have to restart that production line, which would cost tens of millions of dollars to get going and that\u2019ll be, it\u2019ll take years to start that up again and build the first catapult.\u201d\n <\/p>\n

\n The USS Doris Miller\u2019s delay, along with the retirements of carriers in the Nimitz class, could mean the US Navy will \u201cbe very short on carrying capacity\u201d next decade, Clark added.\n <\/p>\n

\n Democratic Sen. Mark Kelly, a retired Navy captain, criticized the memo in a post on X on Thursday, saying, \u201cI\u2019ve launched off the front of aircraft carriers hundreds of times, have a Master\u2019s degree in aeronautical engineering, and am a test pilot and even I wouldn\u2019t suggest to the Navy how to engineer specific systems on its ships.\u201d\n <\/p>\n

\n \u201cDonald Trump should stick to what he knows best \u2014 ballrooms, bankruptcy, and bullshit,\u201d he added.\n <\/p>\n

\n CNN has reached out to General Atomics \u2014 which made EMALS for the USS Gerald Ford and was set to do the same for the USS Doris Miller \u2014 for comment.\n <\/p>

Read more 31 health and wellness products that boosted our overall well-being (and will for life)<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

President Donald Trump has directed the US Navy to scrap the modern electromagnetic launch system on an upcoming aircraft carrier and instead revert to an older, steam-powered catapult method \u2014 potentially adding billions to its price tag and delaying its deployment into the late 2030s.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":9827,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-9830","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-politics"],"yoast_head":"\n\u2018Very outdated\u2019: Trump\u2019s directive to revert to steam catapults on new aircraft carrier baffles naval experts - Relocation Times<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/relocationtimess.com\/?p=9830\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"\u2018Very outdated\u2019: Trump\u2019s directive to revert to steam catapults on new aircraft carrier baffles naval experts - 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