On Wednesday, Chief Pentagon spokesman and Senior advisor to Secretary of War Pete Hegseth, Sean Parnell issued a statement on X, announcing the departure of Secretary of the Navy John C. Phelan.
STATEMENT:
— Sean Parnell (@SeanParnellASW) April 22, 2026
Secretary of the Navy John C. Phelan is departing the administration, effective immediately.
On behalf of the Secretary of War and Deputy Secretary of War, we are grateful to Secretary Phelan for his service to the Department and the United States Navy.
We wish…
STATEMENT:
Secretary of the Navy John C. Phelan is departing the administration, effective immediately.
On behalf of the Secretary of War and Deputy Secretary of War, we are grateful to Secretary Phelan for his service to the Department and the United States Navy.
We wish him well in his future endeavors.
Undersecretary Hung Cao will become Acting Secretary of the Navy.
Parnell did not give further details on what led to Phelan's departure.
Phelan was confirmed and sworn in as Secretary of the Navy on March 25, 2025. With a career as a financier, Phelan oversaw cutting of waste in the Navy's defense budget and focused on rebuilding the Navy into the proactive fighting and deterrence force it had been in the past. Phelan assisted in the launch of President Donald Trump's vision of a Golden Age of Naval Fleets, as well as spearheaded several public-private partnerships to revitalize and rebuild American shipbuilding, the maritime defense apparatus, and empowered new technology corporations in marrying maritime manufacturing with robotics and AI technology.
In March, SecNav Phelan oversaw the ribbon-cutting on one of the partnerships: the Hadrian Alabama Factory 4 plant in Cherokee, AL. During that event, SecNav Phelan said:
This is step one of revitalizing the maritime industrial phase of what the Golden Fleet is, which is rebuilding the fleet, revitalizing the maritime industrial base, and changing the way the Navy does business. This is really a win-win between the Navy and Hadrian. Shared risk, alignment of incentives, downside protection, and upside participation. It's the way we're going to start to do things.
Read More: Pres. Trump, Sec. of War Hegseth, and Navy Sec. Phelan Announce Golden Age of Naval Fleets
SECNAV John Phelan Cuts Ribbon in Alabama on 'Golden Fleet' Manufacturing Facility
Another Phelan-engineered, public-private partnership was with Gray Matter Robotics to revitalize domestic shipbuilding.
Under Secretary of the Navy Hung Cao will move into the role of Acting Secretary of the Navy, and will no doubt further the work started by Phelan. Cao is a retired Navy Captain and Special Operations Officer (Explosive Ordnance Disposal and Deep Sea Diving) who has seen deployments to Iraq, Afghanistan, and Somalia. He served active duty for 25 years before his retirement, and was a candidate for U.S. Senate for Virginia in 2024 before being nominated and confirmed as Under Secretary of the Navy.
There’s nothing better than serving America’s sons and daughters. https://t.co/5kbWYbcRbB pic.twitter.com/GmZxfoleov
— Hung Cao (@HungCao_VA) April 15, 2026
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