This book provides background information and potential oversight issues for Congress on the Columbia-class program, the Gerald R. Ford (CVN-78) class aircraft carrier program, the Navy's FFG(X) program, on the Navy's Littoral Combat Ship (LCS) program and on three new ship-based weapons the Navy is developing that could improve the ability of Navy surface ships to defend themselves against missiles, unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), and surface craft: the Surface Navy Laser Weapon System (SNLWS), the electromagnetic railgun (EMRG), and the gun-launched guided projectile (GLGP), previously known as the hypervelocity projectile (HVP).