New Frigates of Trump’s ‘Golden Fleet’ to Be Based on Patrol Ship

The design of the U.S. Coast Guard’s Legend-class patrol ship will form the basis for the U.S. Navy’s new FF(X) frigates, which will become part of President Trump’s so-called “Golden Fleet.”

This was reported by the naval-focused publication USNI News, citing U.S. Secretary of the Navy John F. Whalen and Chief of Naval Operations Admiral Daryl Caudle.

Following the cancellation of the Constellation-class frigate program based on the Franco-Italian FREMM design, the U.S. Navy selected a 4,000-ton patrol ship design developed by HII’s Ingalls Shipbuilding as the foundation for the new FF(X) program.

“We will ensure wartime mission readiness while leveraging the American industrial base – competition, accountability, and real results: steel in the water. To achieve speed and scale in production, I have directed the procurement of a new class of frigates based on a proven American design – the Legend class, a ship that already protects U.S. interests at home and abroad,” Secretary Whalen stated.

Admiral Caudle added that the new frigate design will prioritize American-developed projects and construction at U.S. shipyards.

Two U.S. Navy officials told USNI News that the service intends to award HII a non-competitive contract under the FF(X) program to rapidly meet updated “combat force requirements.” The new requirement for this class of ships is 73 vessels, of which fewer than one-third are currently available.

“Initially, we will award a sole-source contract for the lead ship to Ingalls, but we will move to a competitive process as quickly as possible,” one senior official told the publication.

Jason Potter, the acting Assistant Secretary of the Navy for Research, Development, and Acquisition (RDA), said the Navy believes the future frigate could be in the water by 2028.

According to senior officials, the shipbuilding program will begin after Admiral Caudle approved reduced requirements for the new frigate class earlier this year.

One of the few planned modifications to the patrol ship design is the construction of a platform above the open boat deck to accommodate containers with modular equipment. For example, the U.S. Army and Lockheed Martin have developed the MK 70 Typhon vertical launch system in the form factor of a standard 40-foot shipping container.

It is worth noting that this approach has already failed on the Independence-class ships. In addition, questions arise about the need to train personnel to operate each new “equipment package,” as well as what to do with the equipment when a module is removed or replaced.

Golden Fleet

The Trump administration has proposed creating a Golden Fleet to counter the growing Chinese naval threat. Under the concept, these ships are intended to significantly boost the U.S. Navy’s overall firepower.

Many details of the “Golden Fleet” remain unclear, but the U.S. Secretary of the Navy has nevertheless offered some insight into what can be expected.

According to Whalen, the “Golden Fleet” will include an American-built frigate distinct from the Constellation class, modernized tankers and logistics vessels, and “quite a lot” of unmanned technologies.

The fleet could also potentially include “battleships” displacing between 15,000 and 20,000 tons—significantly larger than today’s destroyers—and armed with hypersonic weapons.