Daijiworld Media Network - Washington
Washington, Aug 14: US President Donald Trump has ordered the US Navy to remove the advanced electromagnetic system used to launch fighter jets from its newest aircraft carriers and return to older steam-powered catapults that he has long favoured.
The directive, issued on Thursday, is expected to cost billions of dollars and would return the Navy's most advanced carriers to a system that requires more sailors to operate and is more difficult to maintain.
A White House memorandum directs the Pentagon and Navy to present Trump with plans within two months to remove the Electromagnetic Aircraft Launch System (EMALS). It also calls for the electromagnetic weapons elevators on Ford-class carriers to be replaced.
Trump has criticised the magnetically powered catapult system for years. His opposition dates back at least to 2017, during his first term, when he described the technology as inadequate compared with traditional steam systems.
The directive comes as the US military seeks additional funding from Congress for major defence programmes and the Navy continues to face difficulties in filling its ships with sufficient sailors.
The fourth Ford-class carrier, USS Doris Miller, has been designated as the first ship to receive the changes. The USS Gerald R. Ford, USS John F. Kennedy and USS Enterprise will retain the electromagnetic systems.
However, replacing the system on a ship whose design has already been finalised could prove technically and financially challenging.
General Atomics, which manufactures EMALS, said the decision to abandon the system on the Doris Miller "warrants careful reconsideration". The company said work on the carrier's catapults and arresting gear was already about halfway complete and warned that changing the design at this stage would create significant cost, schedule and integration risks.
Trump's memorandum itself acknowledged that frequent design changes have contributed to increased costs, delays and cancellations in the Navy's shipbuilding programme.
The decision also comes as the US Congress considers funding sought by the Trump administration for the Pentagon and the military's operations, including the war in Iran.
Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth estimated last month that the cost of the war had risen to $37.5 billion. Republicans have also been preparing a $95 billion package to fund military requirements and other administration priorities.
The House of Representatives narrowly approved the package, while the Senate is expected to consider it when lawmakers return in September.
EMALS has several advantages over traditional steam catapults. The system can launch aircraft at varying speeds, requires less maintenance, uses less space and needs fewer sailors to operate.
On the USS Gerald R. Ford, EMALS reduced the number of sailors required to operate the catapults from about 12 to two.
The decision to return to a manpower-intensive system comes as the Navy continues to struggle with staffing shortages. At the beginning of the year, the service had around 20,000 unfilled positions across the fleet.
The move also puts the US at odds with some of its allies and competitors in adopting electromagnetic launch technology. China's newest aircraft carriers use electromagnetic catapults, while France plans to deploy the technology on its next aircraft carrier.
The Navy had itself highlighted EMALS earlier this year, saying the system enabled the USS Gerald R. Ford to launch and recover aircraft at a higher rate than the older Nimitz-class carriers.