US Navy Shrinking Fleet Spurs Strategic Vulnerability Amid Global Tensions

The U.S. Navy is currently facing a multifaceted crisis involving both cultural and industrial challenges. Internally, the Navy’s ethos and identity are unraveling, which some experts argue undermines its foundational strength beyond just issues of fleet size and infrastructure. Industrially, the Navy struggles with inefficiencies in shipbuilding, where U.S. yards lag behind Indo-Pacific allies like Japan and South Korea, who employ more effective labor practices and advanced technologies such as robotics and AI. Secretary of the Navy John Phelan highlighted that these allies achieve greater output with fewer labor hours and less paperwork, setting a benchmark the U.S. aims to meet. Meanwhile, the Navy fleet is shrinking, projected to drop to around 280 ships by 2027, while China’s fleet is expected to grow beyond 400 ships, raising significant strategic concerns. This decline coupled with decades of deregulation and deindustrialization exposes the U.S. to geopolitical and economic vulnerabilities at sea.