Next carrier to be named for Ford

[Michael H. Standart]

From HRMilitary.com:

Gerald R. Ford carrier's new aircraft catapult system launches first live Super Hornets

quote:

The oft-maligned new aircraft-launching equipment that will be installed on the U.S. Navy's new class of aircraft carriers successfully catapulted four F/A-18E Super Hornets off a land-based runway late last month, the Navy and the equipment's manufacturer said.

More at http://www.dailypress.com/news/military/dp-nws-emals-20110103,0,2635164.story

 

[Michael H. Standart]

From The Navy Newsstand:

Construction Begins on Navy's Newest Aircraft Carrier

quote:

NEWPORT NEWS, Va. (NNS) -- Advance construction started on the nation's newest aircraft carrier Feb. 25 with a "first cut of steel" ceremony at Northrop Grumman Shipbuilding Newport News, Va.

The steel plate cut will be used in the construction of the carrier, which has yet to be named, but will be designated CVN 79.

More at http://www.navy.mil/search/display.asp?story_id=58799

 

[Michael H. Standart]

From Aviation Week:

Emals Focus Shifts To Production

quote:

While all eyes and most future aircraft carrier hopes rested on December’s first successful Electromagnetic Aircraft Launch System (Emals) launch of an F/A-18E Super Hornet, the real test is about to begin – making sure the Emals equipment can be produced in time to ensure the CVN-78 can be delivered on schedule.

More at http://www.aviationweek.com/aw/generic/story_channel.jsp?channel=defense&id=news/asd/2011/03/04/03.xml&headline=Emals%20Focus%20Shifts%20To%20Producti on

 

[Michael H. Standart]

From The Navy Times:

Navy to correct delayed aircraft launch system

quote:

The new Electromagnetic Aircraft Launch System under development for the Navy took a “pause” to correct problems that appeared after the first test launch in December, a top Navy official said March 9.

More at http://www.navytimes.com/news/2011/03/defense-aircraft-launch-system-coming-back-after-pause-030911/

 

[Michael H. Standart]

From Aviation Week:

Ford Carriers Stay On Schedule

quote:

While the rest of the aircraft carrier community breathed a collective sigh of relief in December when the U.S. Navy’s new Electromagnetic Aircraft Launch System (Emals) launched its first Boeing F/A-18E Super Hornet, shipbuilders and contractors for the next-generation CVN-78-class flattop knew the real work was just beginning.

More at http://www.aviationweek.com/aw/generic/story_channel.jsp?channel=defense&id=news/dti/2011/04/01/DT_04_01_2011_p30-295729.xml&headline=Ford%20Carriers% 20Stay%20On%20Schedule

 

[Michael H. Standart]

From World Maritime News:

USA: First Gerald R. Ford-Class Carrier Gets Another Step Toward Completion

quote:

Gerald R. Ford (CVN 78), the lead ship in the new class of U.S. Navy super carriers, took another step toward completion Saturday as Huntington Ingalls Industries erected a 945-ton superlift near the stern of the ship.

More at http://worldmaritimenews.com/archives/18251

 

[Michael H. Standart]

From The Navy Newsstand:

PEO Carriers Incentivizes Industrial Improvements While Building CVN 78

quote:

NEWPORT NEWS, Va. (NNS) -- The Navy's next aircraft carrier, Gerald R. Ford (CVN 78), reached a significant step in its construction with the placement of a 945-ton superlift — the largest lifted to date — at Huntington Ingalls Industries' Newport News facility, May 21.

The carrier is being constructed using a modular process that welds together smaller sections to form larger structural units called superlifts.

More at http://www.navy.mil/search/display.asp?story_id=60649

 

[Michael H. Standart]

From The Navy Times:

Next carrier to be named for President Kennedy

quote:

BOSTON – Navy Secretary Ray Mabus announced Sunday the next Gerald R. Ford-class aircraft carrier will be named in honor of President Kennedy.

The selection, designated CVN 79, pays tribute to his service in the Navy, in the government and to the nation.

More at http://www.navytimes.com/news/2011/05/navy-next-carrier-to-be-named-for-president-kennedy-052911w/

 

[Michael H. Standart]

From The Navy Times:

Navy tests carriers’ steam catapult replacement

quote:

PENSACOLA, Fla. – The Navy is testing a replacement for the ubiquitous steam catapults that have hurled countless thousands of planes from aircraft carriers since the 1950s.

The Electromagnetic Aircraft Launch System, or EMALS, will launch aircraft using a linear electric motor located beneath the carrier deck.

More at http://www.navytimes.com/news/2011/06/gannett-navy-tests-replacement-steam-catapult-062211/

 

[Michael H. Standart]

From Defence News:

U.S. Navy Resumes EMALS Tests

quote:

Flight tests of the U.S. Navy's new electromagnetic aircraft launch system (EMALS) resumed in late May after a five-month hiatus, and two more aircraft types have now passed their initial launch tests.

More at http://www.defensenews.com/story.php?i=6913462&c=AME&s=SEA

 

[Michael H. Standart]

From The World Maritime News:

USA: HII Receives USD 504 Million Contract to Complete Aircraft Carrier Gerald R. Ford

quote:

Huntington Ingalls Industries received a $504 million cost-plus-incentive-fee contract extension to continue engineering work associated with construction of the nuclear-powered aircraft carrier Gerald R. Ford (CVN 78).

More at http://worldmaritimenews.com/archives/25906

Comment: This article includes a nice photo of the ship under construction.

 

[Michael H. Standart]

From Aviation Week:

Ford Carrier Faces Cost Overruns

quote:

The U.S. Navy’s next-generation aircraft carrier CVN-78 Gerald R. Ford could exceed the current contract’s price by about 11%, Naval Sea Systems Command (Navsea) officials confirm.

More at http://www.aviationweek.com/aw/generic/story_generic.jsp?channel=aerospacedaily&id=news/asd/2011/08/11/04.xml&headline=Ford%20Carrier%20Faces%20Cost%2 0Overruns

Comment: The people responsible for this program had better get it together. In the present fiscal environment, cost overruns will not be taken lightly!

 

[Michael H. Standart]

From Marine Link:

HII Awarded $56.5m CVN 79 Contract Modification

quote:

Huntington Ingalls Industries, Inc. (NYSE:HII) received a $56.5 million contract modification, under a previously awarded contract, for continuation of long lead time material procurement associated with construction of the nuclear-powered aircraft carrier John F. Kennedy (CVN 79).

More at http://www.marinelink.com/news/modification-contract339930.aspx

 

[Michael H. Standart]

From SignOnSanDiego:

Navy's next aircraft carrier halfway complete

quote:

The next U.S. aircraft carrier, the Gerald R. Ford, is structurally halfway complete.

The first ship in the Navy’s new class of carriers has been under construction at Huntington Ingalls Industries’ shipyard in Newport News, Va., since November 2009.

More with photo at http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/2011/aug/18/navys-next-aircraft-carrier-halfway-complete/

 

[Michael H. Standart]

From Marine Link:

Aircraft Carrier: Gerald R. Ford (CVN 78) Hits Contstruction Milestone

quote:

Huntington Ingalls Industries, Inc. (NYSE:HII) said that the company's Newport News Shipbuilding (NNS) division placed an 825-ton superlift on the aircraft carrier Gerald R. Ford (CVN 78) on Sept. 12, completing the ship's stern.

More at http://www.marinelink.com/news/contstruction-milestone340441.aspx

 

[Michael H. Standart]

From The Navy Times:

Lakehurst tests electromagnetic launch system

quote:

LAKEHURST, N.J. – Officials at a Navy base in New Jersey have marked a milestone as they continue testing the next-generation in aircraft carrier launch systems.

More at http://www.navytimes.com/news/2011/09/ap-lakehurst-tests-electromagnetic-launch-system-092811/

 

[Michael H. Standart]

From The Register:

Electric plane-flinger for US and Royal navies doing well

quote:

The electromagnetic mass-driver catapults that will equip the next generation of aircraft carriers in the British and US navies are doing well in tests. This is important to both services, as their next carriers will be effectively useless without the new technology.

More at http://www.theregister.co.uk/2011/09/30/emals_tests_confirmed_rn/

 

[Michael H. Standart]

From WVEC.com:

Gerald Ford's daughter says aircraft carriers important to nation's defense

quote:

NEWPORT NEWS -- Susan Ford Bale, daughter of President Gerald Ford, said the nation needs a strong defense and aircraft carriers play an important role in the equation.

Ford's daughter was in town to view progress on the ship which will bear her father’s name.

More at http://www.wvec.com/news/military/Gerald-Fords-daughter-says-aircraft-carriers-important-to-nations-defense-131554713.html

 

[Michael H. Standart]

Today's Feature Story from The Navy Times:

Ford-class carriers to have larger gyms

quote:

The new Gerald R. Ford-class aircraft carriers will have a more advanced catapult system to launch airplanes, a new type of arresting gear to land them, and an upgraded nuclear propulsion system.

But there’s one little-discussed feature that may make life at sea more enjoyable: bigger gyms.

More HERE

Comment: Given the Navy's near obsession with physical fitness, this is a welcome development.

 

[Michael H. Standart]

From The World Maritime News:
USA: NNS to Lift and Place Island on Aircraft Carrier ‘Gerald R. Ford’
See World Maritime News - USA: NNS to Lift and Place Island on Aircraft Carrier ‘Gerald R. Ford’