Where nuclear propulsion fits an American escort fleet

Should all future US Navy cruisers and destroyers be nuclear powered?

The proposal favors nuclear cruisers for carrier escort and conventional destroyers for lower cost and wider port access.

The proposal assigns nuclear propulsion to cruisers that could match the mobility of American carriers and combine that endurance with their other escort duties. Building a few more ships of one cruiser design is considered simpler than maintaining separate nuclear and conventional cruiser families. Destroyers are judged too small to justify the expense and have presence duties that require access to ports restricting reactor-powered vessels. The panel also questions using destroyers for the full range of missions once divided among light cruisers, heavy cruisers, and sloops. One contributor defends countries' right to restrict nuclear ships, with New Zealand given as an example. The argument for cruisers draws on the United States' existing submarine nuclear infrastructure and presents greater individual capability as one possible response to competition with China, while leaving future procurement decisions uncertain.