The number has crept back up, but the Navy is still far below its pre-9/11 size. Navy personnel levels have been on a roller coaster, reaching a high of 383,000 in FY 2002 and a low of 318,000 in FY 2012. (Congress allows the services some leeway.) The Navy had a good year for recruiting and retention, so its actual active-duty end strength was higher than what had been authorized.

Ship numbers matter to the Navy because of the high demands for its forces in day-to-day operations for crisis response, allied and partner engagement, and ongoing regional conflicts.

Naval aviation, in contrast to the surface and subsurface fleets, remains focused on manned platforms.

Esper wants the Navy to find the resources internally and may provide some resources from savings across the Department of Defense (DOD). The new fleet structure costs about the same as the 355-ship fleet.

The Navy and the secretary of defense seem to have different interpretations about the future fleet, as has been the case for many years.

However, many details remain unavailable, and to be real, the plan needs to be incorporated into the president’s FY 2022 budget proposal.

Carriers and large surface combatants (LSCs) may be cut to pay for the unmanned vessels, additional submarines and small surface combatants, and a new class of small amphibious ships.

On October 7, Secretary Esper outlined a “500+ ship” future fleet described as “an ever-present, resilient, and dominant fighting force.”.

When the Navy could not come up with a feasible new plan, Secretary of Defense Esper took over.

The structure was also criticized for focusing on large and expensive ships, particularly aircraft carriers, and not incorporating unmanned surface and undersea vessels/vehicles.

The 355-ship goal was deemed infeasible because of its high cost.The Navy continues to plan on significant expansion.

Fleet size increases to 306 ships as previously ordered ships arrive, particularly the numerous littoral combat ships (LCS).

In FY 2021, Navy active-duty personnel would increase by 5,300 to 347,800.

A new plan incorporates smaller ships and large numbers of unmanned systems. However, its previous plan to reach 355 ships collapsed because of high costs and the need to incorporate new technologies such as unmanned systems. Unlike the other services, the Navy has sought to significantly expand its force structure.

Us military ship construction terms