Washington: The US Navy’s recent force structure study puts even greater importance on small combatants, the director of surface warfare said, a shift in priorities that could require the surface navy to rebalance its ongoing modernisation plans.

“We want to build a lot of frigates and [have] somewhat smaller, very capable ships being proliferated out through the fleet,” Rear Admiral Fred Pyle said.

The 2023 Battle Force Ship Assessment and Requirement study, which concluded in June but remains classified, did not bring “significant changes” to Pyle’s portfolio at OPNAV N96. However, it did shift the balance among large, small and unmanned combatants.

Asked whether the study called for more frigates generally, or more frigates at the expense of larger Arleigh Burke-class destroyers, Pyle said only that the Navy has “that constant challenge of trying to balance” the portfolio to fit the budget. His main takeaway from the new force structure assessment, Pyle added, is “the value of having numbers for small surface combatants.”

Navy spokesman David Clark said the study called for a 381-ship fleet ­— up from the previous call for 373 vessels — and “reinforces the need for a larger, more capable, more distributed naval force.”

Pyle said the Constellation-class frigate, for which construction began in August 2022, can help distribute the force by offering a capability similar to the Arleigh Burke destroyers but in a smaller, less expensive package. For now, Pyle’s directorate is focused on keeping the frigate program fully funded so the Navy and Fincantieri’s Marinette Marine shipyard can finish the design and construction.

“Eventually we’d like to get to four frigates a year, and that will take a second yard,” Pyle said, without providing a timeline for ramping up production.

Although Navy leaders have long talked about wanting to build four a year to support a larger small combatant fleet — as the recent study emphasised — the Navy’s most recent long-range shipbuilding plan never reaches that rate. Leaders have said they want to see Fincantieri mature the design and production line before a second shipbuilder joins the program.

Pyle said the Navy and Pentagon are still finalizing what the force structure study means for the budget and ongoing modernisation plans, and that more details would be released with the fiscal 2025 budget request around February. Pyle said he views the surface force modernisation plan in three Future Years Defence Programs — or five-year budgetary planning windows for the Pentagon.