Global engineering and defense technologies provider HII announced on March 01, 2022 that the company’s Newport News Shipbuilding division completed the first Planned Incremental Availability (PIA) for aircraft carrier USS Gerald R. Ford (CVN-78). Gerald R. Ford is the first ship in a new class of aircraft carriers that incorporates 23 new technologies, designed to support the Navy’s air wing of the future.
«It is truly an honor and a privilege for our shipbuilding team to ready this most technologically advanced aircraft carrier for the Navy fleet», said Lucas Hicks, vice president of the USS Gerald R. Ford (CVN-78) and USS John F. Kennedy (CVN-79) aircraft carrier programs. «We look forward to folding what we learned into the entire Gerald R. Ford class, extending the Navy’s power projection advantage around the globe».
Gerald R. Ford-class aircraft carriers incorporate new technologies such as electromagnetic catapults and weapons elevators, a redesigned flight deck and island, and more than twice the electrical capacity of Nimitz-class carriers. These aircraft carriers are designed to be the centerpiece of the Navy’s deployed battle force and alongside allies and partners, they defend freedom, preserve economic prosperity and keep the seas open and free.
The PIA involved six months of modernization and maintenance work to ensure Gerald R. Ford has the most current upgrades prior to the carrier’s maiden deployment. The ship entered the PIA in September 2021 after completing full ship shock trials and a successful post-delivery test and trials period.
Three other Gerald R. Ford-class aircraft carriers are currently under construction at Newport News Shipbuilding. They include USS John F. Kennedy (CVN-79), USS Enterprise (CVN-80) and USS Doris Miller (CVN-81). In addition, Newport News Shipbuilding is conducting mid-life refueling complex overhauls on two Nimitz-class aircraft carriers – USS George Washington (CVN-73) and USS John C. Stennis (CVN-74). These overhauls will extend the service life for each platform by another 25 years, ensuring the Navy is positioned to deploy a fleet of aircraft carriers ready to support national security requirements.
General Characteristics
| Builder | Huntington Ingalls Industries Newport News Shipbuilding, Newport News, Virginia |
| Propulsion | 2 A1B* nuclear reactors, 4 shafts |
| Length | 1,092 feet/333 m |
| Beam | 134 feet/41 m |
| Flight Deck Width | 256 feet/78 m |
| Flight Deck Square | 217,796 feet2/20,234 m2 |
| Displacement | approximately 100,000 long tons full load |
| Speed | 30+ knots/34.5+ mph/55.5+ km/h |
| Crew | 4,539 (ship, air wing and staff) |
| Armament | ESSM (Evolved Sea Sparrow Missile), RAM (Rolling Airframe Missile), Mk-15 Phalanx CIWS (Close-In Weapon System) |
| Aircraft | 75+ |
* – Bechtel Plant Machinery, Inc. serves the U.S. Naval Nuclear Propulsion Program
Ships
| Ship | Laid down | Launched | Commissioned | Homeport |
| USS Gerald R. Ford (CVN-78) | 11-13-2009 | 11-09-2013 | 07-22-2017 | Norfolk, Virginia |
| USS John F. Kennedy (CVN-79) | 08-22-2015 | 10-29-2019 | ||
| USS Enterprise (CVN-80) | ||||
| USS Doris Miller (CVN-81) | ||||
| CVN-82 |