U.S. Navy considers redesigning Ford-class carriers to match Trump’s preference for WWII-era look
The proposed changes could delay the programme and add billions of dollars in costs, officials say
AI-assisted coverage comparison, editor-supervised · How this was made
U.S. Navy considers redesigning Ford-class carriers to match Trump’s preference for WWII-era look
Photograph: Joe.My.God. (embedded from source)
What this story says
- The U.S. Navy is assessing whether to move the command tower on Ford-class aircraft carriers forward, closer to the centre of the ship, to resemble World War II-era carriers.
- President Donald Trump has pushed for the redesign, citing a preference for the older aesthetic, according to current and former U.S. officials.
- The Congressional Budget Office estimates the proposed "Trump-class" warships could cost $2.75 trillion over 30 years, or $180 billion per ship.
- Previous studies during Trump’s first term found that moving the tower could cost billions and cause significant delays to the carrier programme.
Who covered it
Percentages are shares of the 7 outlets carrying a published leaning rating. 2 of the 9 outlets we know ran this story carry no rating and are not counted in them. Coverage measured .
Trust
78/100
Craft
95/100
Hype
18/100
9 sources · methodology
Thin on the right so far
Only 1 of the 7 outlets with a published leaning rating that ran this story are rated right.
This story is still being watched, so it is a count and not yet a finding. Coverage keeps arriving for hours after an event, and a side that has published nothing this morning may publish by tonight. If it is still true when we stop checking, we will say so plainly.
The U.S. Navy is evaluating a redesign of its Ford-class aircraft carriers to move the command tower, known as the island, from the rear of the ship toward the middle. The change would make the carriers resemble those used during World War II. The review follows requests from President Donald Trump, who has expressed a preference for the older design, according to seven current and former U.S. officials cited by the Washington Post.
The Ford-class carriers, the newest in the U.S. fleet, are designed with the island at the rear to improve efficiency and safety. Officials told the Washington Post that the rear placement allows for more space near the catapults, reducing the time needed to launch aircraft and lowering the risk of turbulence during landings. The first and only operational Ford-class carrier, the USS Gerald R. Ford, entered service in 2017.
Trump has previously intervened in naval design decisions. On 13 August 2026, he signed a memorandum directing the Navy to replace the electromagnetic catapults on the carriers with steam-powered versions, a move that officials warned could also delay construction and increase costs. The Navy studied a similar redesign during Trump’s first term and concluded that moving the island would require billions of dollars and cause significant delays, according to a former senior official.
The Congressional Budget Office estimates that the proposed "Trump-class" warships, announced last year as part of the Navy’s "Golden Fleet" modernisation plan, would cost $2.75 trillion over 30 years. The cost per ship is projected at $180 billion. The Navy has not yet determined whether the redesign will proceed, and the timing and scope of the evaluation remain unclear.
What the coverage left out
None of the left-rated digests mentioned the Congressional Budget Office’s $2.75 trillion cost estimate for the "Trump-class" warships. The centre-rated digest from Political Wire did not include any details on the potential cost or delays of the redesign. The right-rated report from Yonhap News Agency was the only one to include the CBO’s estimate.
The Washington Post’s full report, which was the basis for most of the digests, included details on the efficiency and safety benefits of the current rear placement of the island. None of the digests from left-rated outlets carried this information.
Still developing. We have re-checked which outlets are covering this 6 times, most recently on 15 Aug 2026, 19:15, and will add the sides that appear.
How each side covered it
Our own reading of the reporting listed below, written from the outlets’ articles rather than quoted from them. The reasoning is set out on our methodology page.
Left
5 rated outlets
- The four left-rated reports led on the cost and delays associated with the proposed redesign. Joe.My.God. and the Washington Post both quoted current and former officials warning that moving the island could cost "billions of dollars" and "significantly delay the program." The Independent’s digest noted that naval experts had warned of "severe schedule delays." Mediaite’s digest described the redesign as "costly."
- Joe.My.God. and the Washington Post both framed the redesign as driven by Trump’s personal aesthetic preferences. Joe.My.God. used the phrase "Trump’s preferred aesthetic for the warships" and quoted officials saying the review was in response to Trump’s concerns about the "look" of the Ford-class ships. The Washington Post’s digest stated that Trump "wants the new fleet of aircraft carriers to more resemble those from World War II."
- Joe.My.God. included a direct quote from a former senior official, who said a study during Trump’s first term found that moving the island "could cost billions of dollars in redesign costs and significantly delay the program." The outlet also noted that Trump had ordered the Navy to return to steam-powered catapults, which would "also cost billions."
Centre
1 rated outlet
- The centre-rated digest from Political Wire led on the Navy’s consideration of the redesign to match Trump’s preferences. It quoted the Washington Post’s description of the proposed change as a "major redesign" and noted that the review was in response to Trump’s taste. The digest did not mention the cost or potential delays.
Right
1 rated outlet
- The right-rated report from Yonhap News Agency led on Trump’s influence over the redesign, framing it as a response to his "retro taste." The headline described the proposed changes as due to Trump’s "'Retro Taste'." The report quoted a former senior official who said the Navy had studied the redesign during Trump’s first term and concluded that it would require "unimaginable" time and cost.
- Yonhap News Agency included the Congressional Budget Office’s estimate that the proposed "Trump-class" warships would cost $2.75 trillion over 30 years, or $180 billion per ship. The report also noted that Trump had previously directed the Navy to replace the electromagnetic catapults with steam-powered versions, which officials warned could cause "serious cost overruns and construction delays."
- The report quoted a former U.S. Navy officer from the Hudson Institute, who said moving the island would affect the ship’s buoyancy and weight, requiring "substantial costs" and causing "very large disruptions."
Read it at the source
9 outlets, grouped by the leaning a published rating gives them. Every headline links to the original; an underlined outlet name opens our profile of that publisher.
Left
5- Rage erupts as Trump's 'foolish whims' hit Navy with another 'extraordinary' cost (opens Raw Story in a new tab)
Raw Story — is Raw Story biased? Our profile of this outletOpinion
- Navy weighs redesign of its main warships to meet Trump’s preferred WWII look: report (opens The Independent in a new tab)
The Independent — is The Independent biased? Our profile of this outlet
- Trump Prefers a World War II Look for U.S. Navy — Which Is Considering an Expensive Ship Redesign: Report (opens Mediaite in a new tab)
- Trump Pushes Navy To Redesign New Aircraft Carriers (opens Joe.My.God. in a new tab)
Joe.My.God. — is Joe.My.God. biased? Our profile of this outlet
- Navy weighs major warship redesign to match Trump’s preferences (opens The Washington Post in a new tab)
The Washington Post — is The Washington Post biased? Our profile of this outlet
Centre
1Right
1Not rated
2- Upgrading the U.S. Fleet to Retro-Flavour Trump Could Cost Billions of Dollars. (opens RTVI in a new tab)
- Trump Prefers Ships to Look More Like World War II, the Navy Considers Redesigning Them to the Liking of the President (opens meneame.net in a new tab)
meneame.net — is meneame.net biased? Our profile of this outlet
Questions about this coverage
- How did the left and right cover U.S. Navy considers redesigning Ford-class carriers to match Trump’s…?
- Of the 7 outlets on this story carrying a published leaning rating, 71% are rated left, 15% are rated centre, 14% are rated right. Those percentages are shares of the rated outlets, not of every outlet that ran it, which was 9. The sections above set out what each side emphasised, in its own terms.
- Is U.S. Navy considers redesigning Ford-class carriers to match Trump’s… left or right?
- Too few of the outlets on this story carry a published leaning rating to say. 7 of them do, and this site does not characterise a field under 12: at that size one newsroom filing moves the share by ten points. The percentages above are the count as it stands.
- Is the coverage of U.S. Navy considers redesigning Ford-class carriers to match Trump’s… biased?
- U.S. Navy considers redesigning Ford-class carriers to match Trump’s preference for WWII-era look is one event reported by 9 outlets, and this page does not rate the story as biased or unbiased. What it publishes is the spread: which outlets ran it, where named rating organisations place each of them on the spectrum, and what each side chose to lead with. A leaning rating describes an outlet's record over time, not this article, and the two should not be run together.
- Which side is not reporting U.S. Navy considers redesigning Ford-class carriers to match Trump’s…?
- When we first saw this story, outlets rated right had barely covered it. Coverage accretes for hours after an event, so that is where to look rather than a verdict — the split above is the current count, and it is the one to read.
- Which outlets covered U.S. Navy considers redesigning Ford-class carriers to match Trump’s…?
- 9 that we know of, every one of them listed further up this page with a link to its own report and to what we hold on the publisher. Nothing here is a summary of somebody else's summary: the outlets are named so the original reporting can be read.
- What is the U.S. Navy considering changing on its new aircraft carriers?
- The U.S. Navy is evaluating whether to move the command tower, or island, on its Ford-class aircraft carriers from the rear of the ship toward the middle. The change would make the carriers resemble those used during World War II, following requests from President Donald Trump.
- How much could the proposed redesign cost?
- Previous studies during Trump’s first term found that moving the island could cost billions of dollars. The Congressional Budget Office estimates the proposed "Trump-class" warships could cost $2.75 trillion over 30 years, or $180 billion per ship.
- Why does Trump want the carriers redesigned?
- President Donald Trump has expressed a preference for the aesthetic of World War II-era carriers, according to current and former U.S. officials. The Navy’s review of the redesign is in response to Trump’s concerns about the "look" of the new Ford-class ships.
- What are the potential consequences of the redesign?
- Officials warn that moving the island could cause significant delays to the carrier programme and require billions of dollars in redesign costs. The change could also affect the ship’s buoyancy and weight, leading to further disruptions, according to a former U.S. Navy officer.
How did this read?
About the coverage, not about the story. We do not ask whether you agree with what happened — we have no honest use for that answer.
