Navy Looks to New Readiness Organizations for 75 Ready Ships

The U.S. Navy’s surface fleet is still short of its readiness goal of 75 combat-credible surface ships at any given time. Then-Commander of Naval Surface Forces Vice Adm. Roy Kitchener announced the goal in January 2023. At the time, the Navy had low 50s ships that were mission-capable. Vice Adm. Brendan McLane reported that over the past year, the fleet has maintained 50-60 ships on any given day. The fleet is making efforts to improve maintenance and protect against delays. New organizations have been leveraged to help increase the readiness of the fleet and maintain ships on time.