Navy Announces 13 Fiscal 2026 Ship Retirements

By Richard R. Burgess, Senior Editor

ARLINGTON, Va. — The U.S. Navy has announced its plan to retire 13 ships during fiscal 2026, including two ships held over from last year.

In a Feb. 20 message released by Rear Admiral M. D. Behning, acting deputy chief of naval operations for Warfighting Requirements and Capabilities, the planned retirements included six warships and seven auxiliary ships. Most of the retirements are planned for the summer.

The two Ticonderoga-class guided missile cruisers on the list, USS Shiloh (CG 67) and USS Lake Erie (CG 70), originally were to be decommissioned in fiscal 2025. Shiloh had transferred to Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, from Yokosuka, Japan, but was kept in commission with the change in presidential administrations. Lake Erie was deployed to the U.S. 4th Fleet supporting Operation Southern Spear and had remain deployed as fiscal 2025 expired. The ships will be stored as support assets and their retirement by September will leave the fleet with five cruisers.

One Los Angeles-class attack submarine, Newport News (SSN 750), was inactivated in January. Its inactivation will be followed in August by that of USS Alexandria (SSN 757), leaving the fleet with 18 Los Angeles-class boats. The submarines will be scrapped.

One of the early Freedom-class littoral combat ships, USS Fort Worth (LCS 3), will be decommissioned by July and will be scrapped. A Whidbey Island-class dock landing ship, USS Germantown (LSD 42), will be decommissioned by September and retained as a support asset, leaving the fleet with five other ships of the class.

Three Henry J. Kaiser-class fleet replenishment oilers are being removed from service with Military Sealift Command in 2026: USNS Big Horn (T-AO 198) by March and USNS John Ericsson (T-AO 194) and Pecos (T-AO 197) by July. The Big Horn and Pecos are being transferred to the Maritime Administration, and the John Ericsson will be retained as a support asset. These retirements will leave the fleet with ten oilers of the class. The ships are being replaced by the John Lewis class T-AOs, which first deployed in 2025.

Three Watson-class large, medium-speed, roll-on/roll-off ships will be transferred to the Maritime Administration: USNS Pomeroy (T-AKR 316) by April, USNS Watkins (T-AKR 315) by July, and USNS Red Cloud (T-AKR 313) by September. The retirements will leave the Military Sealift Command with three ships of the class.

The singular VADM K.R. Wheeler (T-AG 5001) will be transferred from the Military Sealift Command to the Maritime Administration by July. It is equipped with an offshore petroleum distribution system uniquely designed to pump fuel ashore from up to eight miles.