NEWPORT NEWS, Va. — President Trump on Thursday used the country’s most advanced, 100,000-ton aircraft carrier as the action-movie-like backdrop for his push to rebuild America’s armed forces with a $54 billion increase in military spending.

Speaking in the hangar bay of the nuclear-powered Gerald R. Ford, which this year will become the nation’s largest and most powerful warship, Mr. Trump said the Navy — and other military services — must grow and modernize.

“We will make it easier for the Navy to plan for the future and thus to control costs and get the best deals for the taxpayer,” the president said. “The same boat for less money, the same ship for less money, the same airplanes for less money.”

Ever the showman, Mr. Trump arrived on the carrier in dramatic style, landing on the flight deck aboard his helicopter, Marine One. He emerged with a sharp salute and wearing his trademark red Make America Great Again baseball cap.