Defense Secretary Mark Esper blew Naval growth projections out of the water Tuesday when he announced a goal of more than 500 manned and unmanned ships by 2045.
Citing China’s military growth as a motivating factor, the defense secretary discussed the recent report Battle Force 2045. The plan would also help the Navy reach a congressionally mandated goal of 355 “traditional,” manned ships by 2035, matching a Chinese benchmark.
“Beijing wants to achieve parody with the United States Navy, if not exceed our capabilities,” Esper said, repeating a common refrain about Chinese hostilities in the South China Sea.
“This aggression would only grow worse. Should the Chinese Communist Party achieve its stated modernization goals and build a military that can fully implement its nefarious plans,” he said. “We cannot let that happen.”
Esper, speaking at the Washington-based Center for Strategic and Budgetary Assessments, said China was a motivating factor for the urgent call. The secretary recently also visited California shipbuilding facilities and spent a week in the Indo-Pacific region visiting allies to drum up support for containing China.
“Battle Force 2045 calls for a more balanced Navy of over 500 manned and unmanned ships,” he said. “We will reach 355 traditional battle force ships prior to 2035, the time at which the [People’s Republic of China] aims to fully modernize its military.”
Esper describes the future fleet as one that embraces new technologies, including “artificial intelligence, autonomous systems, ubiquitous sensors, and long-range precision weapons.”
He did not discuss the untold billions of dollars the lofty goal is expected to cost. He did say it cannot be done if Congress cuts the defense budget and delays program implementation by only passing continuing resolutions.
Spurring months of controversy that the Navy could only reach the 355 goal with unmanned ships, Esper insisted that number would be reached with manned ships. In the face of Chinese “carrier killer” ballistic missiles, many commentators have wondered aloud if large platforms like supercarriers would be phased out.
Not so, said Esper.
“Nuclear-powered carriers will remain our most visible deterrent with the ability to project power and execute sea control missions across the globe,” he said.
Esper said the Department of Defense is working on modernizing the air wing to operate at extended ranges, and the Navy will increase its fleet of attack subs.
“If we do nothing else, the Navy must begin building three Virginia class submarines a year, as soon as possible,” he said, calling for a fleet of 70 to 80 attack subs.
Esper described a fleet of eight to 11 nuclear-powered supercarriers and more options for lighter carriers, such as the USS America, which carries more than a dozen F-35Bs.
The defense secretary said America’s shipyards are the Navy’s “Achilles’ heel.” He noted that when he became defense secretary just over a year ago, the Navy was suffering from maintenance and readiness challenges.
China is known to have a fast-growing shipbuilding capacity that would challenge America to keep up in a time of conflict.
“We cannot build and sustain our proposed fleet without the ability to service and repair a greater number of vessels in a more timely fashion,” Esper said.
Nonetheless, Esper denied that the changes and the required actions were specifically geared toward countering China’s capabilities.
“You don’t build a force around a single scenario,” the defense secretary said. “That said, we know the challenges that are before us.”
