Below 31? Will The Marine Corps Have Enough Amphibious Assault Ships?

by Kris Osborn, President, Center for Military Modernization

Launching 5th-generation stealth air attack, controlling groups of surface, air and undersea drones, transporting Marines for fast air and surface attack missions and conducting massive, full-scale amphibious warfare campaigns … are just a few reasons why the Navy and Marine Corps Combatant Commanders consistently request amphibious assault ships.

The 2024 Defense Bill has been passed by Congress, and the legislation does fund some now-in-development amphibious assault ships, however the appropriations committees are now tasked with allocating the dollars necessary to build the ships.

Priorities for the Corps include ongoing construction and development of the next-two critical America-class amphibious assault ships, called LHA 9 and LHA 10 as well as critical funding for Amphibious Transport Dock LPD 33. The first three America-class amphibs, a next-generation platform capable of transporting as many as 20 F-35Bs, are built .. and the service is surging ahead with plans to build the next two. and ship-builders are waiting for Congressional appropriations to approve and release portions of the funds.

Marine Corps Adapts

Recognizing the changing nature of the global environment, and the increasingly concerning Chinese threat in the Pacific, the Corps has in recent years made a number of intense moves to adapt to the kinds of amphibious warfare operations which will be required in the future. There are many elements to this, to include a literal “explosion” of unmanned systems, manned-unmanned teaming and command and control, high-speed, yet extremely lethal weapons platforms to support expeditionary operations, specialized “island-hopping” littoral units and “Stand-In” forces positioned to quickly close with an enemy as needed. Many of these adaptations were outlined in the Marine Corps Force Design 2030, a strategic text outlining the Corps adaptive approach to future amphibious warfare. Among other things, the concepts of operation articulated in the text seek to build upon the speed and rapid deployment capability of platforms armed with anti-armor weapons and fortified by close-in drone-surveillance and targeting. Success of anti-armor weapons in Ukraine, for instance, is cited in the Marine Corps Force Design 2030 text as a reason why light, expeditionary yet extremely lethal sea-air-land, multi-domain forces are needed. This was the reason why the Corps is reducing its amount of heavy armor, as the service wants to prioritize rapid deployment, anti-armor lethality, island-hopping sea-land warfare operations and extensive use of unmanned systems for surveillance and close-in-attack. While many applaud the Corp’s vigorous effort to adapt to a new threat environment with lighter, faster anti-armor weapons and drones, some former Corps amphibious assault commanders maintain that tanks and heavy armor should remain a critical element of any amphibious assault force. 

“If you read the history of every major war. The most frightening thing for enemy soldiers to be under artillery fire…a barrage of artillery fire. It will wreck them, body, mind, and soul. We have a whole thing about it, don’t we? Shell shock. So to not be able to deliver cheap volume fire would be a critical mistake…..to not be able to support assaults with our armored vehicles, armor, et cetera, would be a critical mistake,” Former Director of Expeditionary Warfare, Navy, Ret. Maj. Gen. David Coffman, senior Warrior Naval Warfare Expert, said in an interview with Warrior about the future of amphibious warfare.

Coffman, who Commanded a Marine Expeditionary Unit, told Warrior he was glad that there is a legal mandate for 31 amphibious assault ships … but feels 31 is much to small a number for the Corps.