US President Donald Trump announced Monday the creation of a new “Trump class” of Navy battleships, describing them as the most powerful warfighting vessels ever built and a replacement for what he called America’s “old and tired and obsolete” fleet.
Speaking from the library at his Florida resort of Mar-a-Lago, Trump declared the ships will “help maintain American military supremacy, revive the American ship building industry, and inspire fear in America’s enemies all over the world.”
Flanked by renderings of the “Trump class” vessels at sea, Trump said he would take an active personal role in their design.
The President appeared alongside Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who also serves as national security adviser. While Trump did not use the term “Trump class” during his speech, aides referred to the new line of ships as forming the centerpiece of the Navy’s new “Golden Fleet.”
“The US Navy will lead the design of these ships along with me because I’m a very aesthetic person,” Trump said, as quoted on CNN. The ships, he added, will be equipped with “guns and missiles at the highest level,” including hypersonic weapons, electric rail guns, cruise missiles, and “the most sophisticated lasers in the world.”
According to Trump, the steel giants will each weigh between 30,000 and 40,000 tons, built entirely in the United States and featuring high levels of artificial intelligence. “They’ll be very AI controlled,” he said, without elaborating.
The president said the project will begin with two ships, followed quickly by eight more, with long-term plans for 20-25 vessels in the fleet. He said the battleships will serve as the “flagship of the American Naval fleet” and form the backbone of US maritime strength for decades.
Trump also vowed to upgrade American aircraft carriers as part of his broader “Golden Fleet” reforms.
Each Navy ship class is traditionally named for its first vessel, meaning that Trump’s proposed design could eventually result in a ship called the USS Trump-though event posters featured the title USS Defiant under the “Trump class” renderings.