Pentagon says Navy Secretary John Phelan is out

April 23, 2026

Summary

Pentagon said Navy Secretary John Phelan left his post immediately, with Undersecretary Hung Cao named acting secretary.

Why this matters

The leadership change comes during active Navy operations tied to Iran and continues a broader reshaping of senior military leadership under Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth. It signals an immediate shift in civilian oversight of the Navy.

Navy Secretary John Phelan left his post effective immediately, the Pentagon said Wednesday.

Chief Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell said Navy Undersecretary Hung Cao will serve as acting Navy secretary.

“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,” Parnell wrote. “We wish him well in his future endeavors.”

Phelan had attended the Navy League’s annual Sea-Air-Space symposium in Washington this week. On Tuesday, he spoke with reporters at a media roundtable about the Navy’s focus on shipbuilding capacity as the service sought to double its vessel requests under the fiscal 2027 defense budget. He also delivered a keynote address at the conference.

Phelan was confirmed in March 2025 by a 62-30 vote. He was the seventh non-veteran to serve as Navy secretary in the past 70 years.

A founder of investment firm Rugger Management LLC, Phelan was the first service secretary nominee announced by President Donald Trump after his return to office. Army Secretary Dan Driscoll was confirmed before him.

The announcement also followed several senior military leadership changes under Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth. On April 2, Hegseth asked Army Chief of Staff Gen. Randy George to step down and retire immediately, ending a tenure that began in September 2023.

Gen. David Horne and Maj. Gen. William Green were also removed from their roles that day. Since taking office, Hegseth has fired more than a dozen generals and admirals, including Joint Chiefs Chairman Gen. C.Q. Brown and Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Lisa Franchetti.

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