Navy secretary says need for new shipbuilding is a 'national emergency' at local visit

Gavin Stone, The Virginian-Pilot on Apr 17, 2025

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NORFOLK, Va. — Secretary of the Navy John Phelan, sworn in less than a month ago, visited shipyards in Norfolk and Newport News on Wednesday as part of a tour that’s taken him around the country.

Speaking to media at Norfolk Naval Shipyard, Phelan emphasized the need for new investment in shipbuilding to meet the demands of the moment, calling it a “national emergency.” He floated building ships overseas in partnership with foreign allies as well as using old shipyards and advancements in technology to shrink the “footprint” of current shipyards to allow for expanded manufacturing of military vessels.

“I think we have grossly underinvested in this country and hollowed out manufacturing and that’s been a real problem, and we now have a real demand signal for the industrial base — particularly for (submarines) and carriers — and so we’re behind and now we have to catch up,” Phelan said.

He said creating the workforce needed to spur this growth would require job programs that match the focus put on coding in recent years.

“We spent the last 10 years teaching people how to code, we’re going to spend the next 10 teaching them how to use their hands,” Phelan said. “That is going to be a critical skill set and I believe that we can create very good careers, long-term careers.”

Phelan was sworn in March 25 and is overseeing the Navy’s $263.5 billion annual budget. Previously he was the founder and chairman of the Palm Beach-based private investment company Rugger Management, and was co-founder and co-managing partner of MSD Capital. He has a an MBA from Harvard and has a bachelor’s degree in economics and political science from Southern Methodist University.

In talking to workers at different levels of the shipbuilding process, some common themes emerged, including difficulties with parking. He said these conversations will inform his decisions going forward.

Phelan said one of the main focuses of his visit was to check on the construction of the Ford-class aircraft carrier USS John F. Kennedy, which is three years behind schedule. He said he’s still gathering information, but is “optimistic” the issue can be resolved.

“I think it’s a number of different factors, I’m still really formulating that,” he said. “I think it’s going to take a whole-of-government approach to fix.”

Overall he said he was very impressed with Hampton Roads’ shipyards, particularly the capacity to build nuclear powered supercarriers, calling them the “backbone of our deterrence and the president’s peace through strength initiative.”