On August 13, 2026, Trump signed a national security memorandum directing the Navy to abandon the electromagnetic catapults on its Ford-class aircraft carriers, the most advanced in the fleet, and revert to steam, which the Navy has not purchased in more than twenty years. Defense analysts say the change will cost billions, force extensive ship redesigns, and reduce the carriers’ capabilities, and many naval officers opposed it. His stated reasons were his own: he called the modern system “stupid electric” and said of steam, “you fix it with a hammer and a blowtorch.” The same memorandum also turns to allied foreign shipyards to build some U.S. warships as a temporary bridge while domestic capacity is rebuilt, an unusual step for a president who vowed to resurrect American military shipbuilding. Weeks earlier, China had showcased its newest carrier launching jets with the very electromagnetic technology he ordered removed.
SourcesTrump orders return of steam catapults (Breaking Defense) · Ordered back to steam over officers’ objections (Bloomberg) · China fields the tech he is abandoning (Interesting Engineering) · The memorandum, in full (White House)
