The Navy faces huge hurdles in trying to get to 355 ships – but a new shipbuilding plan due in coming weeks could change the whole calculus.

In any post-New START nuclear buildup, Russia will “at least initially” have an edge over the US, says retired Lt. Gen. Frank Klotz, former head of Air Force Global Strike Command.

The HASC ‘Space Corps’ will be much cheaper than the Trump Administration’s plan for a Space Force, says CBO.

Two top Democrats blasted the proposal, calling it a “blatant attempt to make a mockery of the federal budget process.”

The White House only has a few objections to this year’s NDAA, and lets Congress know what they are as the Senate gears up for debate.

Todd Harrison is one of the best defense budget folks around. Like many budget weenies (that’s the technical term) he really cares about how people come up with cost estimates because the underlying assumptions for them can lead in radically different directions. One example is the recent estimate on how much the next generation of… Keep reading →

ANNAPOLIS: The President, Congress and the Navy now all want the fleet to grow from the current 278 ships to 355, but that will probably take until the 2050s, the Navy’s No. 2 civilian said Wednesday. “To quote the Rolling Stones, you can’t always get what you want,” said Thomas Dee, who has served for… Keep reading →

WASHINGTON: That the Navy should get more money to build up its surface and submarine fleets may be the message Chief of Naval Operations Adm. John Richardson sends in an upcoming article which he promises would be a “strong Navy voice” on budget issues. Richardson told an audience at the Brookings Institution Thursday that he would be… Keep reading →

President Trump and the US Navy want a 355-ship fleet, but even if you double shipbuilding budgets compared to historic levels, it can’t be done until 2032, at least 12 years after the end of Trump’s current term of office. That’s the estimate offered today by the Congressional Budget Office. At a more sustainable but… Keep reading →

UPDATED with Marine Corps data CAPITOL HILL: More than 60 percent of Navy and Marine Corps strike fighters are out of service, the Navy confirmed today. While 62 percent of fighters are effectively grounded, the overall figure for all naval aircraft is 53 percent. [UPDATE: With some of the oldest fighter jets in service, Marine Corps… Keep reading →