By Franz-Stefan Gady
A lawmaker is pushing to increase the number of operational aircraft carriers in the U.S. Navy from 11 to 12.
In reaction to the revelations during a House Armed Services Committee hearing that the Navy will not have the capabilities to provide a “continuous” aircraft carrier presence in both the Middle East and the Asia-Pacific until 2021, Republican representative Mike Conaway of Texas introduced legislation to increase the number of operational aircraft carriers in the U.S. Navy fleet mandated by law from 11 to 12.
“The USS John F. Kennedy (CVN-79) can be scheduled for completion in 2023, at which point the U.S. Navy will again have 12 operational aircraft carriers. The number of carriers mandated by Congress should match shipbuilding plans already in place in order to set the standard for the future,” he said in a press release.
“Since World War II, the U.S. Navy has depended on its aircraft carriers to provide forward presence and power projection. From the Korean War until 2000, the Joint Chiefs of Staff aimed to maintain a 15-carrier Navy. However, declining military budgets forced the Navy to reduce to 12 aircraft carriers by 1998, and to 11 aircraft carriers by 2007. Congress then set the number at 11 to prevent even further reductions,” the congressman stated.
“Today, there is a gap in carrier presence in the Persian Gulf as the Iran nuclear deal goes into effect, and Navy acquisition chief Sean Stackley testified before a House Armed Services Subcommittee hearing today that gaps in presence will continue until 2021.”
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