The FF(X) Frigate and Naval Station Everett: The Complete 2026 Guide to What’s Left to Win After the Constellation Cancellation

Is Naval Station Everett still getting new frigates? Not yet. The twelve Constellation-class frigates originally assigned to Everett are gone — Secretary of the Navy John Phelan cancelled the program on November 25, 2025. On December 19, 2025, the Navy announced a replacement class called FF(X) based on Huntington Ingalls Industries’ Legend-class National Security Cutter, with the lead ship to be built at Ingalls Shipbuilding in Mississippi and launched in 2028. The Navy has not announced homeports for the FF(X). Rep. Rick Larsen (D-Everett) and Snohomish County officials are actively lobbying Navy leadership to assign the new class to Everett on the same Pacific-access grounds that won the Constellation assignment in 2021.

Why Everett’s Frigate Future Matters Right Now

Naval Station Everett is home to roughly 6,000 active-duty sailors and civilians across five ships and supporting commands. Economic Alliance Snohomish County has consistently pegged the base’s annual economic impact at approximately $340 million. For four years, that number was supposed to climb. Twelve Constellation-class guided-missile frigates were scheduled to arrive in Everett between 2026 and 2028, bringing an estimated 2,900 additional personnel, new pier work, and a generational reset for the base.

Then the Constellation program collapsed. Cost overruns, schedule slips, and a design that had diverged too far from its FREMM parent hull led the Navy to pull the plug in late November 2025. By December 19, Secretary Phelan and Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Daryl Caudle had announced the replacement: a new class called FF(X), based on a design the Coast Guard has been operating successfully for nearly two decades.

What the FF(X) Actually Is

The FF(X) is a roughly 4,000-ton surface combatant based on HII’s Legend-class National Security Cutter — the 418-foot platform the Coast Guard uses for its largest cutters. The Navy’s version will keep the proven hull and propulsion but add combat systems sized for a frigate mission: likely a vertical launch system, upgraded radar, and a raised platform over the open boat deck for containerized mission packages. Crew size is planned at about 140 sailors, substantially smaller than the 200-plus Constellation-class complement.

The first FF(X) will be built at HII’s Ingalls Shipbuilding yard in Pascagoula, Mississippi — the same yard that builds the Legend-class cutters. Additional builders will be added through competition, which matters because the Navy wants production rates higher than any single yard can sustain. The first ship is expected to be launched in 2028. Homeports have not been announced.

Everett’s Case — And Why It’s Still Strong

Naval Station Everett won the original Constellation-class homeport assignment in 2021 for reasons that have not changed: deepwater access, direct Pacific egress without an Intracoastal run, existing family-housing inventory at Navy Region Northwest, and the backbone of support commands already stood up in Puget Sound. The pier infrastructure improvements that were planned for the Constellation arrival — shore power upgrades, expanded dry-dock access at Puget Sound Naval Shipyard, and berthing capacity at Everett’s own piers — are still needed for any frigate class the Pacific Fleet wants to forward-deploy.

Rep. Rick Larsen, the ranking member of the House Armed Services Seapower Subcommittee and the congressman representing Everett, has been explicit about his ask: homeport the FF(X) class at Naval Station Everett. The argument is infrastructure readiness plus strategic geography. If the Navy wants FF(X) hulls operating in the Western Pacific quickly, Everett is the least friction-heavy option on the West Coast. San Diego is already saturated. Pearl Harbor is stretched. Everett has pier room, housing headroom, and a workforce already trained on frigate-adjacent platforms.

What Changed Between Constellation and FF(X)

Three things shifted that matter for Everett:

Smaller crews. Constellation-class was designed for 200-plus sailors per ship. FF(X) is currently planned for about 140. If the same twelve-ship end strength is preserved, that reduces the Everett population bump from roughly 2,900 to closer to 2,000 personnel and dependents — still a meaningful number for Everett housing and schools, but materially smaller.
Later first delivery. Constellation’s first hull was supposed to arrive at Everett in 2026. FF(X) first launch is targeted for 2028, with first operational deployment and homeport assignment several years beyond that. Everett’s frigate economic bump, if won, is a late-2020s story, not an immediate one.
A different builder geography. Constellation was a Marinette, Wisconsin hull. FF(X) is Pascagoula. For Snohomish County’s aerospace-adjacent defense suppliers, that shifts some of the maintenance and sustainment opportunity structure — the Puget Sound Naval Shipyard work for mid-life availabilities becomes more important than builder-yard proximity.

The Snohomish County $340M Economic Argument

Economic Alliance Snohomish County’s public messaging during the Constellation cancellation campaign centered on a consistent figure: Naval Station Everett generates approximately $340 million in annual regional economic activity. That includes direct payroll, base contracting, and the multiplier effect on housing, retail, schools, and medical services in north Snohomish County. A frigate homeport assignment would grow that number. Losing the assignment permanently — with no FF(X) replacement — would cap it at current levels and risk future base-realignment vulnerability.

That economic case is the throughline of the current lobbying push. Sen. Maria Cantwell, Sen. Patty Murray, Rep. Larsen, and Snohomish County Executive Dave Somers have all been publicly aligned on Everett’s candidacy for the FF(X) homeport.

The Timeline — What to Watch

2026: FF(X) detailed design work at Ingalls; Navy budget documents may begin naming candidate homeports.
2027: Construction of lead hull begins. Pier-infrastructure RFPs at potential homeports start clarifying which bases are being seriously considered.
2028: Lead FF(X) launched at Pascagoula. Homeport announcements typically precede launch by 12–18 months, so the homeport decision window for the first hull is roughly 2026–2027.
Early 2030s: First operational deployment and arrival at homeport.

What Everett Loses If It Doesn’t Win FF(X)

The existing five-ship footprint at NAVSTA Everett — three Arleigh Burke-class destroyers, USS Gridley and her sister destroyers and support ships — is stable for the rest of the decade. Nothing in the FF(X) decision threatens the base’s current assignments. What’s at stake is the growth story: additional hulls, additional sailors, the pier improvements that were already scoped for Constellation, and the political durability that comes from being a growing homeport rather than a static one.

Frequently Asked Questions

When did the Navy cancel the Constellation-class frigates Everett was supposed to receive?

Secretary of the Navy John Phelan announced the cancellation of the Constellation-class program on November 25, 2025. The twelve ships originally planned for Naval Station Everett will not be built.

What is the FF(X) frigate?

The FF(X) is the Navy’s replacement frigate class, announced December 19, 2025. It is based on Huntington Ingalls Industries’ Legend-class National Security Cutter — the same 418-foot, 4,000-ton design the U.S. Coast Guard operates. The first ship is to be built at Ingalls Shipbuilding in Pascagoula, Mississippi and launched in 2028.

Will Naval Station Everett get the FF(X) frigates?

The Navy has not announced homeports for the FF(X) class. Rep. Rick Larsen, Sen. Maria Cantwell, Sen. Patty Murray, and Snohomish County Executive Dave Somers are publicly lobbying for Naval Station Everett to receive the assignment, citing the same Pacific-access and infrastructure arguments that won Everett the Constellation homeport in 2021.

How many sailors would FF(X) bring to Everett if the base is selected?

If the Navy holds to a twelve-ship assignment and a crew size of roughly 140 per hull, the FF(X) fleet would bring approximately 1,700–2,000 sailors plus dependents to Naval Station Everett — smaller than the 2,900 personnel the Constellation program would have delivered, but still a material increase over today’s footprint.

When could the first FF(X) frigate arrive at Naval Station Everett?

Based on the December 2025 Navy timeline, the first FF(X) hull is targeted for launch in 2028. Homeport assignment typically occurs 12–18 months before launch, and first operational arrival at a homeport happens 1–2 years after commissioning. Realistically, the earliest an FF(X) would arrive at Naval Station Everett — assuming Everett wins the assignment — is the early 2030s.

What is Naval Station Everett’s current economic impact on Snohomish County?

Economic Alliance Snohomish County estimates Naval Station Everett generates approximately $340 million in annual regional economic activity, supporting roughly 6,000 active-duty sailors and civilians and their dependents across the north Snohomish County economy.

Which Navy ships are currently homeported at Naval Station Everett?

Naval Station Everett currently homeports three Arleigh Burke-class destroyers, including USS Gridley, plus supporting ships and commands. The five-ship current footprint is stable for the rest of the decade and is not affected by the FF(X) homeport decision.

Who is lobbying for Naval Station Everett to get the FF(X) homeport assignment?

The public Everett coalition includes Rep. Rick Larsen (D-Everett), ranking member of the House Armed Services Seapower Subcommittee; Sen. Maria Cantwell; Sen. Patty Murray; Snohomish County Executive Dave Somers; and Economic Alliance Snohomish County. The lobbying focuses on Pacific-access geography, existing pier and housing infrastructure, and the readiness of Puget Sound Naval Shipyard for maintenance availabilities.