Trump's 15-warship plan could cost nearly $300 billion — NYT
Photo: Donald Trump (Getty Images)
In December 2025, US President Donald Trump announced that warships would be built in his honor to form the core of the US Navy's golden fleet. However, The New York Times reports that their cost will be 50% higher than previously anticipated.
According to a government report, the cost of the first planned Trump-class battleship is likely to be $23.4 billion. This is $8 billion more than the Navy initially estimated.
The cost of each of the 14 subsequent ships is expected to rise from $10.2 billion to just over $18 billion. Thus, the total cost of the 15 warships will amount to $275 billion. The price increase is primarily due to the transition to a nuclear propulsion system.
These estimates were made by the independent US Congressional Budget Office, which stated that construction of the first battleship could take 8 years or more.
What else important to know
In December, Trump announced that he expected the first two ships to be completed within the next 2.5 years.
Trump said they would help preserve America's military superiority, revive the American shipbuilding industry, and strike fear into America's enemies around the world.
A few months after the announcement, Trump decided that the ships would be equipped with nuclear reactors instead of the gas turbine engines used on destroyers and cruisers. This, in turn, will significantly increase costs.
