The FY2025 plan described a future 381-ship manned battle force, including 73 small surface combatants. Its small-combatant total combined 15 mine-warfare-capable LCS with 58 frigates, including a modified Flight II. A separate intention to retain 25 LCS raised a question about whether the frigate total would instead be 48. The lead frigate design was still unfinished when these later flights and totals were being discussed. The document's FY2026 snapshot listed 28 LCS and four mine-warfare ships, with no frigates, about 44 percent of the 73-ship objective. It also recorded that the replacement Golden Fleet force composition had not been announced by late December 2025, leaving another planning uncertainty at the time of the video.
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The gap between small-combatant force goals and the serving fleet
The planning documents compare a 73-ship small-combatant goal with 32 serving ships at the start of FY2026, including no frigates.