The missile and electromagnetic cannon array is expected to equip the Trump-class warship

President Donald Trump announced on December 22 that a new class of US Navy warships will be named after him. “The Trump class ships will be the largest battleships in American history and the largest ever built in world history. They will be 100 times faster and more powerful than any previous ship class,” he said.

President Trump said the US will build two ships in the first batch, then build 8 more ships. He estimates that the US Navy will receive a total of 20-25 Trump-class ships to build the “Golden Fleet”.

Although called a battleship by Mr. Trump, the new class of ships has a similar appearance and armament to the large cruiser and destroyer projects being developed by many countries today.

According to technical documents published by the US Navy, the Trump-class warship will have a displacement of more than 35,000 tons, more than twice the largest surface warship the country currently operates, the Zumwalt-class destroyer, with a displacement of 15,000 tons.

President Trump said the new warship will be made of steel and the US will cooperate with a number of countries in the program, but did not reveal whether foreign businesses will participate in the shipbuilding process.

Mr. Trump announced that the ship class named after him will possess hypersonic weapons, electromagnetic guns, cruise missiles and the most sophisticated laser complexes in the world. They are also equipped with AI technology to support control, but US leaders did not reveal further details.

The US Naval Institute (USNI) said the Trump-class warship will replace the Next Generation Guided Missile Destroyer program, codenamed DDG(X), first announced in 2022. DDG(X) warships are expected to have a displacement of more than 13,000 tons.

The new warships are expected to carry a weapon system similar to the Flight III variant of the Arleigh Burke-class destroyer, including the AN/SPY-6 active electronically scanned array radar of the Aegis shield, 128 Mark 41 vertical launchers, two 127 mm caliber gunboats, two 30 mm caliber Mark 38 automatic guns and the SEWIP Block III electronic warfare system.

Mark 41 is the main firepower system on the US surface fleet. It is compatible with many types of weapons in the US Navy, including Tomahawk cruise missiles, VL-ASROC anti-submarine missiles, long-range air defense missiles SM-2, SM-3 and SM-6. This allows each ship to carry both defensive and offensive missiles depending on mission requirements.

In addition, there are a series of new weapons, not yet in mass production or still in the testing process, including 12 Conventional Lightning Strike (CPS) missiles, laser weapons and electromagnetic cannons.

CPS is a project to develop a hypersonic missile with a greater range than most other conventional weapons, allowing it to attack any target around the world in a few minutes to an hour. In the event of a conflict, CPS can become a pre-emptive strike weapon to destroy important enemy facilities.

However, the CPS project is still incomplete, with many failed test launches over the years.

It is unclear what laser weapons will equip the Trump-class warships. The US Navy announced earlier this year that the destroyer USS Preble, equipped with a HELIOS laser weapon, shot down an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) during a test last year.

HELIOS has a default capacity of 60 kilowatts and increases to 120 kilowatts depending on operating needs. This system is responsible for protecting warships from UAVs, speedboats and cruise missiles.

Unlike conventional weapons, laser weapons like HELIOS can theoretically fire continuously if the power source and heat dissipation are guaranteed, helping to reduce operating costs and technical logistics requirements, extending the operating time of the warship.

The US Navy began developing electric guns in 2005, aiming to create a system that could attack many targets such as warships, aircraft, missiles and infrastructure from a distance of over 160 km. The first electromagnetic cannon prototype was test-fired on land in 2017, the projectile reached a speed of 7,200 km/h.

However, the US Navy in 2022 eliminated two expenditures for the electromagnetic gun development project, saying it would store the technology and knowledge gained from the project. Experts at that time said that this was a sign that the US decided to end the electromagnetic cannon program.

The Trump-class warship will use gas and diesel turbine engines and can reach a maximum speed of 56 km/h. The rear of the ship has a flight deck and storage compartment capable of receiving V-22 hybrid helicopters, as well as similar aircraft models.

“The ship will be able to operate independently, join an aircraft carrier battle group or lead a separate battle group depending on the mission and area of ​​operation. With the ability to support front-line command and control for manned and unmanned vehicles, the new warship will play an important role in implementing our combat concept,” the US Navy said.

USNI believes that the US Navy has considered many size options when planning to build a new class of warships, including models with a displacement of up to 50,000 tons and some smaller types at 15,000-20,000 tons. The cost of building Trump-class warships is estimated at 10-15 billion USD each, depending on configuration.