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David Axe, National Interest: The U.S. Navy's New Ford-Class Aircraft Carriers Have Lots of Problems
Four Fords are in service, under construction or under contract. It's unrealistic for the Navy to halt the program. But in light of the problems the lead ship in the class has experienced, it's possible program-wide costs further could grow and schedules could continue to slip.
The U.S. Navy is doubling down on its new Ford-class supercarriers. In February 2019 the Navy paid Virginia shipbuilder Huntington Ingalls $15 billion to begin work on the third and fourth Fords.
Buying two carriers at once could help the Navy finally to achieve its goal of having 12 carriers in service at all times, although under the worst-case scenario it might take the fleet until the 2060s to do so.
But the Navy's hurry to acquire the ships belies lingering problems with the class's design.
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WNU Editor: The latest report to Congress on the Ford Carrier program is here .... Report to Congress on Gerald R. Ford-class Aircraft Carrier Program (USNI News).
