600-ship Navy

File:New Jersey recommissioned.JPG

The recommissioning ceremony for ; President Ronald Reagan attended and gave the ship's orders.

The 600-ship Navy was a strategic plan of the United States Navy during the 1980s to rebuild its fleet after cutbacks that followed the end of the Vietnam War. The plan, which originated with Republican leaders, was an important campaign plank of Ronald Reagan in the 1980 presidential election, who advocated a larger military and strategic confrontation with the Soviet Union.

The number of ships peaked at 594 in 1987, before declining sharply after the end of the Cold War in 1989–1992.

The program included:

• Recommissioning the s
• Keeping older ships in service longer
• A large new construction program
• Stepping up production of s

The idea was supported by John F. Lehman, who became Reagan's Secretary of the Navy, and Caspar Weinberger, Reagan's Secretary of Defense.

Background

The idea behind the 600-ship Navy can be traced back to the Vietnam War. During the war, the armed services rapidly expanded to meet the demands placed on them.

The Soviet Union, which had been supporting North Vietnam, began staging their naval vessels from former U.S. ports in South Vietnam. Building on this gain, Soviet vessels began to sail in all seven seas with increased vigor and even ventured into the Gulf of Mexico. Soviet forces also stepped up infantry, armor, and air force deployments in Eastern Europe.

Reagan plan

It was against this backdrop in 1980 that the United States began an election year. President Reagan continued this in 1984, releasing a campaign commercial "Bear," which played on the use of the bear as a national symbol of Russia in order to promote higher vigilance and defense expenditures against the Soviet Union.

The overseas strategic retaliation arm was strengthened and the development of new weaponry like the B-1B bomber, the Bradley fighting vehicle, and the Abrams tank was completed and they were put into production.

Lehman attempted to "front-load" the program, by committing the Navy to the building program, but in the end the funds were not available and it fell short.

Ships and weapons systems deployed during the plan

The Navy saw the largest benefit of the rebuilding. Under the Reagan administration, the first of the ballistic missile submarines were completed. This class was the largest submarine ever built in the U.S. The ship carried 24 Trident I nuclear-capable missiles, each one with a range. Construction of the Nimitz class of supercarriers and attack submarines were dramatically stepped up. The revolutionary new Aegis Combat System was installed on the upcoming ships, production of which was also stepped up. Several aircraft carriers were put through Service Life Extension Programs (SLEPs) aimed at keeping them in service longer. The Iowa-class battleships, built in the 1940s, were all recommissioned and refitted with RGM-84 Harpoon, BGM-109 Tomahawk, and Phalanx CIWS system capabilities, plus their armor plating would be more resilient against anti-ship missiles. The first Harpoons, Tomahawks, and AGM-88 HARM missiles all debuted on the navy's ships. Naval aviation was stepped up with the introduction of the F/A-18 Hornet, along with improved versions of the EA-6 Prowler electronic countermeasure aircraft, the A-6 Intruder, and the F-14 Tomcat. In addition, the nation's strategic retaliatory arm was strengthened with advanced B-1B bombers and deploying Pershing II theater missiles to Europe. The initiative also included deployment of Abrams main battle tanks and Bradley armored fighting vehicles. U.S. Navy unclassified miscellaneous ships, auxiliary ships, and yard ships are not included in the ship count.

Build-up by year

Aircraft carriers

Class of ships	Image	1980	1981	1982	1983	1984	1985	1986	1987	1988	1989	1990
Nimitz class	File:USS Nimitz (CVN-68).jpg	2	2	3	3	3	3	4	4	4	5	5
	File:USS Enterprise (CVN-65).jpg	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1
Kitty Hawk class	File:USS Constellation (CV-64) aerial Battle E.jpg	4	4	4	4	4	4	4	4	4	4	4
Forrestal class	File:USS Forrestal (CV-59) underway at sea in 1987 (NH 97657-KN).jpg	4	4	4	4	4	4	4	4	4	4	4
Midway class	File:USS Midway (CV-41) bow view c1983.JPEG	2	2	2	2	2	2	2	2	2	2	2
Essex class	File:USS Lexington (CVS-16) underway in the 1960s.JPEG	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1
Total	Ships	14	14	15	15	15	15	16	16	16	17	17

Battleships

Class of ships	Image	1980	1981	1982	1983	1984	1985	1986	1987	1988	1989	1990
	File:Uss iowa bb-61 pr.jpg	0	0	0	1	2	2	3	3	4	4	4
Total	Ships	0	0	0	1	2	2	3	3	4	4	4

Cruisers

Destroyers

Class of ships	Image	1980	1981	1982	1983	1984	1985	1986	1987	1988	1989	1990
	File:USS Chandler (DDG-996).jpg	0	3	4	4	4	4	4	4	4	4	4
	File:020625-N-1056B-004 The U.S. Navy destroyer USS Fife (DD 991).jpg	30	30	30	31	31	31	31	31	31	31	31
	File:USS Charles F Adams (DDG-2) underway c1973.jpg	23	23	23	23	23	23	23	23	23	20	10
	File:USS Farragut DDG-37.jpg	10	10	10	10	10	10	10	10	10	8	7
	File:USS Barry.jpg	18	18	7	1	1	1	1	1	0	0	0
	File:USS Orleck (DD-886) underway off Point Loma, in 1964.jpg	14	7	2	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Total	Ships	95	91	76	69	69	69	69	69	68	63	52

Frigates

Class of ships	Image	1980	1981	1982	1983	1984	1985	1986	1987	1988	1989	1990
	File:USS Hawes FFG-53.jpg	8	17	26	37	45	50	52	54	54	55	55
	File:USS Robert E. Peary (FF-1073) San Francisco.jpg	46	46	46	46	46	46	46	46	46	46	46
	File:USS Schofield (FFG-3) stbd beam view.jpg	6	6	6	6	6	6	6	6	1	0	0
	File:USS Davidson (FF-1045) underway on 1 July 1986 (6421920).jpg	11	11	11	11	11	11	11	11	5	1	0
	File:USS Bronstein (FF-1037), port beam view.jpg	2	2	2	2	2	2	2	2	2	2	2
Total	Ships	73	82	91	102	110	115	117	119	108	104	103

Years	1980	1981	1982	1983	1984	1985	1986	1987	1988	1989	1990
Total major combatants active	208	213	208	214	224	230	236	242	232	229	218

Amphibious assault ship

Class of ships	Image	1980	1981	1982	1983	1984	1985	1986	1987	1988	1989	1990
	File:USS Wasp (LHD 1).jpg	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	1
	File:USS Saipan LHA-2 amphibious assault ship.jpg	5	5	5	5	5	5	5	5	5	5	5
	File:Port bow view of USS Iwo Jima (LPH-2) 1979.jpg	7	7	7	7	7	7	7	7	7	7	7
Total	Ships	12	12	12	12	12	12	12	12	12	13	13

Dock landing ship

Class of ships	Image	1980	1981	1982	1983	1984	1985	1986	1987	1988	1989	1990
	File:US Navy 050117-F-4884R-015 he amphibious dock landing ship USS Fort McHenry (LSD 43) makes a wide turn prior to conducting helicopter operations off the coast of the island of Sumatra, Indonesia.jpg	0	0	0	0	0	1	2	3	3	4	5
	File:US Navy 030117-N-2069B-002 USS Anchorage (LSD 36) departs San Diego Bay.jpg	5	5	5	5	5	5	5	5	5	5	5
	File:USS Thomaston;10122801.jpg	8	8	8	6	4	3	3	3	3	1	0
	File:USS Spiegel Grove LSD-32.jpg	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	0	0
Total	Ships	14	14	14	12	10	10	11	12	12	10	10

Amphibious transport dock

Class of ships	Image	1980	1981	1982	1983	1984	1985	1986	1987	1988	1989	1990
	File:USS Duluth (LPD 6).jpg	12	12	12	12	12	12	12	12	12	12	12
	File:Ussvancouver.jpg	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3
Total	Ships	15	15	15	15	15	15	15	15	15	15	15

Amphibious cargo ship

Class of ships	Image	1980	1981	1982	1983	1984	1985	1986	1987	1988	1989	1990
	File:USS Charleston (LKA-113) underway 1988.JPEG	5	5	5	5	5	5	5	5	5	5	5
	File:USS Tulare (AKA-112) underway off San Francisco, California (USA), on 8 December 1955 (6931994).jpg	1	1	1	1	1	1	0	0	0	0	0
Total	Ships	6	6	6	6	6	6	5	5	5	5	5

Tank landing ship

Class of ships	Image	1980	1981	1982	1983	1984	1985	1986	1987	1988	1989	1990
	File:USS Newport (LST-1179) at Rota 1982.jpg	20	20	20	20	20	20	20	20	20	20	20
General Frank S. Besson class	File:LSV-7 SSGT Robert T Kuroda.jpg	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	2	4	4	4
Total	Ships	20	20	20	20	20	20	20	22	24	24	24

Years	1980	1981	1982	1983	1984	1985	1986	1987	1988	1989	1990
Total amphibious active	67	67	67	65	63	63	63	66	68	67	67

Command Ship

Class of ships	Image	1980	1981	1982	1983	1984	1985	1986	1987	1988	1989	1990
Blue Ridge class	File:USS Mount Whitney;10012001.jpg	2	2	2	2	2	2	2	2	2	2	2
Total	Ships	2	2	2	2	2	2	2	2	2	2	2

Hospital ship

Class of ships	Image	1980	1981	1982	1983	1984	1985	1986	1987	1988	1989	1990
	File:090411-A-1786S-088 - USNS Comfort (T-AH-20) in Hati.jpg	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	2	2	2	2
Total	Ships	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	2	2	2	2

Minesweeper

Class of ships	Image	1980	1981	1982	1983	1984	1985	1986	1987	1988	1989	1990
	File:USS Avenger MCM-1.jpg	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	1	3	3
	File:USS Constant (AM-427).jpg	19	19	19	19	19	19	19	19	19	18	14
Total	Ships	19	19	19	19	19	19	19	20	20	21	17

Patrol ships

Class of ships	Image	1980	1981	1982	1983	1984	1985	1986	1987	1988	1989	1990
	File:PHM-1.jpg	1	1	2	6	6	6	6	6	6	6	6
	File:HS Tolmi (P229) mail transfer.jpg	9	9	9	9	6	6	6	4	4	4	4
Total	Ships	10	10	11	15	12	12	12	10	10	10	10

Replenishment oiler

Class of ships	Image	1980	1981	1982	1983	1984	1985	1986	1987	1988	1989	1990
	File:DN-SC-87-06989.jpg	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	4	6	8	9
	File:USS Cimarron (AO-177) off Apra Harbor pt 1983.jpeg	0	3	4	5	5	5	5	5	5	5	5
	File:USS Wichita (AOR-1) underway in the Indian Ocean on 3 December 1985 (6419167).jpg	7	7	7	7	7	7	7	7	7	7	7
Total	Ships	7	10	11	12	12	12	13	16	18	20	21

Tanker

Class of ships	Image	1980	1981	1982	1983	1984	1985	1986	1987	1988	1989	1990
	File:USNS Gianella.jpg	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	1	1	1	1
SS class	File:SS Chesapeake (AOT-5084).jpg	1	2	2	2	2	2	2	3	3	3	3
Total	Ships	1	2	2	2	2	2	3	4	4	4	4

Ammunition ship

Class of ships	Image	1980	1981	1982	1983	1984	1985	1986	1987	1988	1989	1990
	File:Kilauea2.jpg	8	8	8	8	8	8	8	8	8	8	8
	File:USS Pyro (AE-24) underway in 1980.JPEG	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3
Total	Ships	11	11	11	11	11	11	11	11	11	11	11

Combat stores ship

Class of ships	Image	1980	1981	1982	1983	1984	1985	1986	1987	1988	1989	1990
	File:USNS Niagara Falls T-AFS-3.jpg	7	7	7	7	7	7	7	7	7	7	7
Sirius class	File:Spica(T-AFS-9)-01.jpg	0	2	2	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3
Total	Ships	7	9	9	10	10	10	10	10	10	10	10

Fast combat support ships

Class of ships	Image	1980	1981	1982	1983	1984	1985	1986	1987	1988	1989	1990
	File:USS Camden AOE-2 050217-N-6074Y-108 crop.jpg	4	4	4	4	4	4	4	4	4	4	4
Total	Ships	4	4	4	4	4	4	4	4	4	4	4

Roll-on/roll-off

Class of ships	Image	1980	1981	1982	1983	1984	1985	1986	1987	1988	1989	1990
	File:USNS Regulus.jpg	0	0	0	0	8	8	8	8	8	8	8
Cape Island class	File:SS Cape Island MSC.jpg	4	4	4	4	4	4	4	4	4	4	4
	File:Cape Ducato.JPEG	0	0	0	0	0	5	5	5	5	5	5
	File:Cape May underway.jpg	0	0	0	0	0	0	3	3	3	3	3
Total	Ships	7	9	9	10	10	10	10	10	10	10	10

Destroyer tender

Class of ships	Image	1980	1981	1982	1983	1984	1985	1986	1987	1988	1989	1990
	File:USS Shenandoah (AD-44) underway on 15 February 1984 (6391384).jpg	1	2	3	4	4	4	4	4	4	4	4
	File:USS Puget Sound AD-38 01.jpg	2	2	2	2	2	2	2	2	2	2	2
	File:USS Bryce Canyon (AD-36) underway, off Oahu, Hawaii (USA), 6 February 1978 (NH 92723-KN).jpg	1	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Total	Ships	4	5	5	6	6	6	6	6	6	6	6

Submarine tender

Class of ships	Image	1980	1981	1982	1983	1984	1985	1986	1987	1988	1989	1990
	File:USS McKee (AS-41) 001.jpg	2	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3
	File:USS L.Y. Spear (AS-36) undwerway in 1983.JPEG	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1
Total	Ships	3	4	4	4	4	4	4	4	4	4	4

Crane ship

Class of ships	Image	1980	1981	1982	1983	1984	1985	1986	1987	1988	1989	1990
	File:Equality State.jpg	0	0	0	0	2	2	3	5	5	7	7
	File:SS Cornhuskerstate.jpg	1	1	1	1	2	2	3	3	3	3	3
Total	Ships	1	1	1	1	4	4	6	8	8	10	10

Heavy-lift ship

Class of ships	Image	1980	1981	1982	1983	1984	1985	1986	1987	1988	1989	1990
American Cormorant[1]	File:US Navy 041130-N-0000B-001 The MV American Cormorant submerged fifteen feet below the waterline to allow U.S. Army watercraft to float on in the port of Southampton, England.jpg	0	0	0	0	0	1	1	1	1	1	1
Total	Ships	0	0	0	0	0	1	1	1	1	1	1

Cable ship

Class of ships	Image	1980	1981	1982	1983	1984	1985	1986	1987	1988	1989	1990
	File:USNS Zeus.jpg	0	0	0	0	1	1	1	1	1	1	1
Total	Ships	0	0	0	0	1	1	1	1	1	1	1

Rescue and salvage ship

Class of ships	Image	1980	1981	1982	1983	1984	1985	1986	1987	1988	1989	1990
Safeguard class	File:Uss safeguard.jpg	0	0	0	1	1	2	4	4	4	4	4
Pigeon class	File:USS Ortolan (ASR-22).jpg	2	2	2	2	2	2	2	2	2	2	2
Bolster class	File:Opportune (ARS-41).jpg	6	6	6	6	6	6	6	6	6	6	6
Total	Ships	8	8	8	9	9	10	12	12	12	12	12

Tracking ship

Class of ships	Image	1980	1981	1982	1983	1984	1985	1986	1987	1988	1989	1990
	File:USNS Observation Island (T-AGM-23).jpg	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1
USS Range Sentinel (AGM-22)	File:USNS Range Sentinel T-AGM-22 DNSC8510327.jpg	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1
USNS Vanguard (T-AG-194)	File:USNS Vanguard.jpg	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1
Total	Ships	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3

Ocean surveillance ship

Class of ships	Image	1980	1981	1982	1983	1984	1985	1986	1987	1988	1989	1990
	File:USNS Stalwart.jpg	0	0	0	0	3	7	9	11	13	17	18
Total	Ships	0	0	0	0	3	7	9	11	13	17	18

Oceanographic research ship

Class of ships	Image	1980	1981	1982	1983	1984	1985	1986	1987	1988	1989	1990
	File:USNS Hayes (T-AG-195).jpg	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1
Total	Ships	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1

Years	1980	1981	1982	1983	1984	1985	1986	1987	1988	1989	1990
Total auxiliary active	88	98	100	109	113	119	128	136	140	149	147

Years	1980	1981	1982	1983	1984	1985	1986	1987	1988	1989	1990
Total surface active	363	378	375	388	400	412	427	444	440	445	432

Attack submarines

Class of ships	Image	1980	1981	1982	1983	1984	1985	1986	1987	1988	1989	1990
	File:USS Asheville (SSN-758)2.jpg	10	16	20	25	29	33	35	37	39	42	44
	File:USS Gurnard (SSN-662) underway off San Diego on 1 February 1991 (6467986).jpg	37	37	37	37	37	37	37	37	37	37	37
	File:USSGreenlingSS614.JPG	13	13	13	13	13	13	13	13	12	10	8
	File:USS Shark SSN 591.jpg	5	5	5	5	5	5	4	4	3	3	0
	File:USS Bonefish;0858205.jpg	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	2	1	0
	File:USS Swordfish;0857905.jpg	4	4	4	4	3	3	2	2	1	0	0
	File:USS Seawolf (SSN-575).jpg	1	1	1	1	1	1	0	0	0	0	0
	File:USS Darter (SS-576).jpg	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	0
	File:USS Gudgeon ;0856710.jpg	3	3	3	2	2	2	1	0	0	0	0
Total	Subs	77	83	87	91	94	98	96	97	95	94	89

Ballistic missile submarines

Class of ships	Image	1980	1981	1982	1983	1984	1985	1986	1987	1988	1989	1990
	File:USS Florida (SSGN-728).jpg	0	1	2	3	5	6	8	8	9	10	11
	File:USS Will Rogers;0865905.jpg	12	12	12	12	12	12	12	12	12	12	12
	File:USS Daniel Boone SSBN-629.jpg	10	10	10	10	10	10	9	9	9	8	8
	File:USS Lafayette SSBN-616.jpg	9	9	9	9	9	9	8	8	8	6	3
	File:USSEthanAllenSSBN-608.jpg	5	5	5	3	3	2	2	2	2	2	2
	File:USS George Washington (SSBN-598).jpg	5	4	3	2	1	0	0	0	0	0	0
Total	Subs	41	41	41	39	40	39	39	39	40	38	36

Years	1980	1981	1982	1983	1984	1985	1986	1987	1988	1989	1990
Total submarines active	118	124	128	130	134	137	135	136	135	132	125

Years	1980	1981	1982	1983	1984	1985	1986	1987	1988	1989	1990
Total active fleet	481	502	503	518	534	549	562	580	575	577	557

End of the plan

Eventually political pressure to reduce the national budget deficit resulted in Congress reversing itself and passing a series of declining defense budgets beginning in 1986. Weinberger clashed with Congress over the cuts, resigning in late 1987, and was succeeded by Frank Carlucci. Furthermore, concerns were raised about how the expansion of the Navy would reduce attention and resources needed in other scenarios where the Soviets also had to be confronted such as Europe.

Lehman's successor as Navy Secretary, Jim Webb, remained a fierce proponent of the expanded fleet, and disagreed with Carlucci over how to cut the Navy budget in line with other services. Webb resigned rather than endorse Carlucci's cut of 16 frigates. As revealed in The Reagan Diaries, Reagan reflected about Webb's resignation on 22 February 1988: "Present Sec. Webb resigned over budget cuts. I don't think Navy was sorry to see him go."

Following the dissolution of the Soviet Union in the early 1990s and the lack of a perceived threat against the United States, several of the Reagan administration's policies and plans, such as the "600-ship Navy", were scaled back or abandoned. U.S. bases across Europe and North America were slowly decommissioned and closed, others were mothballed through the Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC) process. In the Navy, this resulted in the retirement of several older carriers, the decommissioning of all four of the Iowa-class battleships and the cancellation of the remaining s.

See also

• Cold War (1979–1985)
• Cold War (1985–1991)
• List of ships of the United States Navy
• National Defense Reserve Fleet
• United States Navy ships

Further reading

• NSC-NSDD-32: U.S. National Security Strategy – The White House, May 20, 1982. archive listings
• Congressional Budget Office:
  • Building a 600-Ship Navy: Costs, Timing, and Alternative Approaches. March 1982
  • Manpower for a 600-Ship Navy: Costs and Policy Alternatives. August 1983
• GlobalSecurity.org
  • Ship Building 1981–89. Reagan, Ronald
• Naval Historical Center:
  • The U.S. Navy in the Cold War Era, 1945–1991
  • NWP 1 – Strategic Concepts of the Navy. February 1987
• Naval War College:
  • John B. Hattendorf. "The Evolution of the U.S. Navy's Maritime Strategy, 1977–1986" Naval War College Newport Paper 19 (2004), Template:ISBN. Available in PDF format here and here
• United States Naval Institute:
  • Lieutenant General Bernard E. Trainor, U.S. Marine Corps (Retired). "Triumph in Strategic Thinking". United States Naval Institute Proceedings Vol. 134, No. 2 (February 2008) pp. 40–42
  • Norman Friedman. "The Navy, the Cold War – and Now". United States Naval Institute Proceedings Vol. 133, No. 10 (October 2007) pp. 58–62

External links

• U.S. Naval Strategy During the Cold War from the Dean Peter Krogh Foreign Affairs Digital Archives
• Building a 600 Ship Navy: The Congressional Budget Office Report