Posted on September 1, 2025
Expensive labor and an undisciplined process have hampered U.S. shipbuilding, says a retired U.S. Navy rear admiral, at a time when China aims to dominate the world’s oceans.
In the latest episode of the “Threat Status” Influencers series, retired Rear Adm. Mark Montgomery detailed some of the issues standing in the way of continued U.S. naval dominance. Notably, he said shipbuilding costs have skyrocketed in the U.S. while peer nations have created efficient and affordable systems.
“The problem is multifaceted. One, over time, this has become an exquisite production facility, which requires an expensive labor force,” Mr. Montgomery told “Threat Status” regarding facilities throughout the country. “And once labor prices become variable on something in the United States, they tend to go up versus, say, in Japan, where they can build some of the same ships as ours for maybe $0.28 on the dollar.”
Despite the protection afforded by the Jones Act, a 1920 law that requires vessels operated between U.S. ports to be built domestically, owned by U.S. companies and staffed by Americans, U.S. shipbuilding capacity has shrunk dramatically the past 50 years. Stringent regulations, aging infrastructure and high labor costs have left most U.S. shipyards inactive.
According to a Signal Group report from April, U.S. shipyards account for less than 1% of commercial vessel production worldwide, while China, Japan and South Korea make up 90% collectively.
Mr. Montgomery said the situation has been made worse due to an undisciplined approach to U.S. shipbuilding, which includes adding components to ships. That overcomplicates the process.
“The Fincantieri, the constellation-class frigate being built at the Fincantieri yard in Wisconsin, has suffered from this,” Mr. Montgomery said. “Where we took an existing ship, an Italian FREMM class frigate, we made so many changes that the price has skyrocketed, the delivery slipped years to the right. This is a lack of discipline.”
Still, Mr. Montgomery said President Trump’s recent initiatives to provide more funding and give U.S. naval officials more control over shipbuilding projects could improve the situation.
