Angeline Leishman
Huntington Ingalls Industries‘ Newport News Shipbuilding division has finished a six-month modernization and maintenance work on the lead ship of the U.S. Navy’s new Gerald R. Ford-class aircraft carriers.
HII said Tuesday the planned incremental availability prepared the upgrades and technologies onboard the USS Gerald R. Ford before the aircraft carriers sails for its maiden deployment.
CVN 78 features 23 new capabilities such as electromagnetic catapults, weapons elevators and a redesigned flight deck that are designed to support the Navy’s future battle force.
“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,” said Lucas Hicks, HII’s vice president of Gerald R. Ford and John F. Kennedy aircraft carrier programs.
HII Newport News Shipbuilding is currently building the next three Gerald R. Ford-class aircraft carriers for the Navy, including John F. Kennedy, Enterprise (CVN 80).
