A House Armed Services subcommittee wants a dozen U.S. Navy aircraft carriers by 2023, according to The Hill.
A proposed bill from the Subcommittee on Seapower and Projection Forces comes just days after the Navy announced that the aircraft carrier Gerald R. Ford will be commissioned in July after years of delays. The Navy currently has 10 carriers in circulation, with the Ford being the 11th. The planned aircraft carrier John F. Kennedy would round out the fleet. After 2023 — and the completion of the Kennedy — the bill would require the Navy to maintain a 12-carrier fleet for the foreseeable future.
For that goal to be possible, however, the Navy would have to speed up its aircraft carrier construction process, the subcommittee said. The Navy has been on pace to add one new carrier to its fleet every five years, but the subcommittee wants the rate to one every three years, according to The Hill.
"Congress is sending a clear signal that [12 is] where we believe they need to drive to and the only real way to get to 12 and stay at 12 is to do it on three-year centers," an aide told The Hill.
The subcommittee did not release a proposed budget but said that it will be announced when the bill reaches a full committee. It will be included in the 2018 National Defense Authorization Act.
"Ultimately it’s up to the bucks that determine whether we’re actually moving forward to three-year centers or not," said an aide.
