By The Washington Times (World News) | Created at 2026-08-14 14:50:31 | Updated at 2026-08-14 16:42:00
2 hours ago
President Trump has ordered the Navy to strip out the new electromagnetic catapults from future aircraft carrier construction plans and return to steam-powered systems that have launched fighter jets into the sky for generations.
On Thursday, Mr. Trump released “Rebuilding the United States Navy and America’s Shipbuilding Industrial Base.”
The directive orders Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth to provide a plan within 60 days for replacing the Electromagnetic Aircraft Launch System and Advanced Weapons Elevators on the USS Doris Miller — a fourth-generation Gerald R. Ford-class nuclear-powered super carrier currently under construction — with steam and hydraulic systems.
“The United States Navy has experienced a series of shipbuilding setbacks stemming from overly complex designs and iterative design change procedures, which have resulted in cost growth, delays and cancellations,” the memo states.
The directive orders the Pentagon to restore capacity and competition to the maritime industrial base by using “proven, reliable, and affordable technologies and ship designs.”
A steam catapult uses high-pressure steam to drive a piston that launches a jet along a track beneath the flight deck. The Electromagnetic Aircraft Launch System, known as EMALS, uses energy drawn from the ship’s nuclear reactors that is discharged in a rapid pulse to create a magnetic field that propels the jet off the carrier.
Mr. Trump has made no secret of his disdain for EMALS catapults. In an interview with Time magazine during his first administration, he relayed how Navy officials told him they were moving on with EMALS despite initial challenges during its development process.
Mr. Trump told the Navy officials that they were going to stick with steam for future aircraft carrier catapults.
“The digital costs hundreds of millions of dollars more money, and it’s no good,” he said.
The last aircraft carrier to be built with steam catapults was the USS George H.W. Bush, which entered the fleet in 2009.
Naval Air Systems Command said EMALS was designed to expand the operational capacity of Ford-class carriers by providing the Navy with the capability of launching all current and future platforms, from lightweight drones to heavy strike fighters.
“This technology permits a high degree of computer control, monitoring, and automation,” the organization, known as NAVAIR, said in a statement.
As a former Navy pilot, Sen. Mark Kelly said he has launched off the front of aircraft carriers hundreds of times and holds a master’s degree in aeronautical engineering.
“Even I wouldn’t suggest to the Navy how to engineer specific systems on its ships. Donald Trump should stick to what he knows best — ballrooms, bankruptcy and b———-,” the Arizona Democrat said on X.
