U.S. Navy Adds 27 New Warships in 5 Years Outpacing Global Rivals in Modernization

In the coming years, the U.S. Navy has plans to update its fleet with a new line of aircraft carriers to replace the aging Nimitz-class. Along with these, there are a series of other ships and submarines that are just now entering service for the U.S. Navy. The process of building a ship and commissioning it for use in the service is a multiyear process, and the bigger that these projects are, the longer they can take. (These are the American warships and submarines with the biggest crews.)

Two new vessels entering service are the Arleigh Burke-class destroyers and the Virginia-class submarines. The Constellation-class is an entirely new class of warship, though it is not yet commissioned. Here, 24/7 Wall St. is taking a closer look at the newest ships to join the Navy.

To determine the U.S. Navy’s newest warships, 24/7 Wall St. reviewed the military data site World Directory of Modern Military Warships’ directory of all active ships in the U.S. and cross-referenced with data from the Naval Vessel Register. We compiled data on all ships and submarines — 27 in total — that have been commissioned in the service of the U.S. Navy in the past five years and ranked them by age. It should be noted that this list is current as of September 2025.

For the U.S. Navy, the Nimitz-class carriers are starting to age out, as most are 30 years and older, and the U.S. plans to replace them with the newer Ford-class supercarriers. The newest is the Gerald R. Ford, which was commissioned in 2017. After years of testing, she only recently achieved full deployment status. Going forward, the Navy will replace the Nimitz carriers on a one-for-one basis with Ford-class carriers.

Currently, the U.S. Navy is composed of destroyers, which account for about 22% of the naval fleet. Submarines come in a close second in terms of allocation, making up about 21% of the fleet. Beyond this, a fleet of cruisers followed by littoral combat ships and amphibious assault support ships accounts for the rest of the naval vessels. (These are the 20 strongest navies on Earth, compared.)

This post was updated on September 8, 2025 to include the most up-to-date information.

Why Are We Covering This?

Knowing the most recent ships and submarines to enter the U.S. Navy is important for understanding the state of national security in the United States. Also, the United States projects power via the Navy, establishing dominance across vast distances and maintaining a secure balance within the global community.

Here is a look at the 27 newest ships to enter the U.S. Navy:

27. USS Delbert D. Black (DDG-119)

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• Commission date: September 26, 2020
• Unit type: Destroyer
• Class: Arleigh Burke-class

26. USS Oakland (LCS-24)

• Commission date: April 17, 2021
• Unit type: Littoral combat ship
• Class: Independence-class

25. USS Miguel Keith (ESB-5)

The crew of USS Miguel Keith (... (CC BY 2.0) by Official U.S. Navy Page

• Commission date: May 8, 2021
• Unit type: Expeditionary mobile base
• Class: Lewis B. Puller-class

24. USS Mobile (LCS-26)

• Commission date: May 22, 2021
• Unit type: Littoral combat ship
• Class: Independence-class

23. USS Daniel Inouye (DDG-118)

The future USS Daniel Inouye (... (CC BY 2.0) by Official U.S. Navy Page

• Commission date: December 8, 2021
• Unit type: Destroyer
• Class: Arleigh Burke-class

22. USS Savannah (LCS-28)

• Commission date: February 5, 2022
• Unit type: Littoral combat ship
• Class: Independence-class

21. USS Frank E. Petersen Jr. (DDG-121)

220514-M-XB450-0531 (CC BY 2.0) by Official U.S. Navy Page

• Commission date: May 14, 2022
• Unit type: Destroyer
• Class: Arleigh Burke-class

20. USS Minneapolis-Saint Paul (LCS-21)

Sailors assigned to USS Minnea... (CC BY 2.0) by Official U.S. Navy Page

• Commission date: May 21, 2022
• Unit type: Littoral combat ship
• Class: Freedom-class

19. USS Oregon (SSN-793)

220528-N-GR655-0152 (CC BY 2.0) by Official U.S. Navy Page

• Commission date: May 28, 2022
• Unit type: Attack submarine
• Class: Virginia-class

18. USS Montana (SSN-794)

• Commission date: June 25, 2022
• Unit type: Attack submarine
• Class: Virginia-class

17. USS Fort Lauderdale (LPD-28)

• Commission date: July 30, 2022
• Unit type: Amphibious transport dock
• Class: San Antonio-class

16. USS Santa Barbara (LCS-32)

• Commission date: April 1, 2023
• Unit type: Littoral combat ship
• Class: Independence-class

15. USS Cooperstown (LCS-23)

• Commission date: May 6, 2023
• Unit type: Littoral combat ship
• Class: Freedom-class

14. USS Lenah Sutcliffe Higbee (DDG-123)

A graphic representation of th... (CC BY 2.0) by Official U.S. Navy Page

• Commission date: May 13, 2023
• Unit type: Destroyer
• Class: Arleigh Burke-class

13. USS Carl M. Levin (DDG-120)

• Commission date: June 24, 2023
• Unit type: Destroyer
• Class: Arleigh Burke-class

12. USS Canberra (LCS-30)

• Commission date: July 22, 2023
• Unit type: Littoral combat ship
• Class: Independence-class

11. USS Marinette (LCS-25)

• Commission date: September 16, 2023
• Unit type: Littoral combat ship
• Class: Freedom-class

10. USS Augusta (LCS-34)

• Commission date: September 30, 2023
• Unit type: Littoral combat ship
• Class: Independence-class

9. USS Jack H. Lucas (DDG-125)

USS Jack H. Lucas (DDG 125) is... (CC BY 2.0) by Official U.S. Navy Page

• Commission date: October 7, 2023
• Unit type: Destroyer
• Class: Arleigh Burke-class

8. USS Hyman G. Rickover (SSN-795)

• Commission date: October 14, 2023
• Unit type: Attack submarine
• Class: Virginia-class

7. USS John L. Canley (ESB-6)

• Commission date: February 17, 2024
• Unit type: Expeditionary mobile base
• Class: Lewis B. Puller-class

6. USS Massachusetts (SSN-798)

• Commission date: Not yet commissioned; Expected in 2025
• Unit type: Attack submarine
• Class: Virginia-class

5. USS Richard M. McCool Jr. (LPD-29)

• Commission date: September 7, 2024
• Unit type: Amphibious transport dock
• Class: San Antonio-class

4. USS John Basilone (DDG-122)

• Commission date: November 9, 2024
• Unit type: Guided-missile destroyer
• Class: Arleigh Burke-class

3. USS Nantucket (LCS-27)

• Commission date: November 16, 2024
• Unit type: Littoral combat ship
• Class: Freedom-class

2. USS Beloit (LCS-29)

• Commission date: November 23, 2024
• Unit type: Littoral combat ship
• Class: Freedom-class

1. USS Iowa (SSN-797)

• Commission date: April 5, 2025
• Unit type: Attack submarine
• Class: Virginia-class