Navy LPD-17 Flight II and LHA Amphibious Ship Programs: Background and Issues for Congress

The Navy is procuring two types of larger amphibious ships: LHA-type “big-deck” amphibious assault ships and LPD-17 Flight II class amphibious ships. Both types are built by Huntington Ingalls Industries/Ingalls Shipbuilding (HII/Ingalls) of Pascagoula, MS. Four LPD-17 Flight II ships were procured in FY2018-FY2025. The Navy’s FY2026 budget requests the procurement of the fifth LPD-17 Flight II class ship and estimates its procurement cost at $2,130.0 million (i.e., about $2.1 billion). The Navy’s FY2026 budget submission also requests the procurement of an LHA-type amphibious assault ship, which is a type of ship that the Navy procures once every few years. The Navy’s FY2026 budget submission estimates its procurement cost at $3,895.0 million (i.e., about $3.9 billion). Section 1023 of the FY2023 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) (H.R. 7776/P.L. 117-263 of December 23, 2022) amended 10 U.S.C. 8062 to require the Navy to include not less than 31 operational larger amphibious ships, including not less than 10 LHA/LHD-type “big-deck” amphibious assault ships and the remaining ships to be LPD-type or older LSD-type amphibious ships. The Navy’s Battle Force Ship Assessment and Requirement (BFSAR) study, which was provided to the congressional defense committees in June 2023, calls for achieving a future fleet of 381 manned battle force ships, including 31 larger amphibious ships, consisting of 10 LHA- and LHD-type “big-deck” amphibious assault ships and 21 LPD- and older LSD-type amphibious ships. (The requirement in 10 U.S.C. 8062 for having 31 larger amphibious ships applies in any case.) Taking into account the 13 LPD-17 Flight I class ships that were procured in FY1996-FY2017, achieving a force of 21 LPD-type amphibious ships would require procuring a total of 8 ships built to the LPD-17 Flight II design or a follow-on design. Section 129 of the FY2023 NDAA permitted the Navy to enter into a block buy contract for procuring a combination of up to five LHA-type and LPD-17 amphibious ships. On September 24, 2024, the Department of Defense (DOD) announced that the Navy had awarded a block buy contract for the construction of three LPD-17 Flight II ships (LPDs 33, 34, and 35), and a modification to a separate contract for the construction of an LHA-type ship (LHA-10). Oversight issues for Congress regarding larger amphibious ships include technical and cost risk in the LPD-17 Flight II and LHA programs, and the operational readiness of in-service amphibious ships. Marine Corps officials in public remarks have called attention to the number of in-service amphibious ships that are not operationally ready because they are undergoing or need maintenance and repair work, and have stated that inadequate numbers of operationally ready amphibious ships have resulted in instances of where the Navy has not been able to meet requests from U.S. regional combatant commanders for amphibious ships with embarked Marines for day-to-day forward presence or responding to contingencies.