Trump battleship plan poses new risk to AUKUS, committee fears

Donald Trump announced a plan to build "Trump-class" battleships in December. (Reuters: Jessica Koscielniak)

Donald Trump's planned "Golden Fleet" of battleships will put more strain on the US Navy's shipbuilding program and could further delay the submarines needed for AUKUS, according to a committee of Congress.

The House Armed Services Committee wants the US Navy to provide reassurances that building the "Trump-class" battleships will not delay other nuclear-powered boats.

The US's submarine-building program is already plagued by construction delays, which pose a threat to Australia's hopes of buying at least three Virginia-class submarines under the AUKUS pact.

Committee members fear the Navy's new plan to build at least 15 Trump-class battleships — also known as BBG(X) — will cause further delays in America's shipyards.

"The committee is concerned about the possibility of strain on US nuclear shipyards and maritime industrial base posed by the aggressive schedule proposed for producing a nuclear powered BBG(X) platform," an amendment to a defence budget bill, passed by the committee this week, says.

Australia hopes to buy three used Virginia-class submarines under AUKUS. (Reuters: Brian Snyder)

The amendment was moved by Democrat Joe Courtney, one of Congress's key AUKUS champions.

The amendment requests the Navy provide a report on its "strategy to design and construct BBG(X) without interfering with existing nuclear-powered shipbuilding plans".

Mr Trump announced plans for the so-called Golden Fleet of battleships in December. He said the "Trump-class" ships would be "the fastest, the biggest, and by far 100 times more powerful than any battleship ever built".

Democrats on the committee unsuccessfully tried to strike out funding for the battleship plan, which Mr Courtney said would "encroach on previous industrial base capacity" and "violates every lesson we've learned on shipbuilding".

Last month, navy documents revealed the Trump-class battleships would be nuclear-powered.

"Worrisome" construction delays plague the US Navy's submarine-building program, which Australia is relying on for its naval fleet.

This could further complicate production of nuclear-powered submarines, because the US Navy uses a single supplier of nuclear reactors for all its boats.

"The committee notes that the procurement of naval nuclear reactors typically occurs 2-to-3 years ahead of procurement of a respective vessel and reactor production timelines typically range from 6-to-8 years," the committee's amendment says.

"The committee is concerned that the ac