The aircraft carrier Gerald R. Ford headed back to sea this morning, its first trip to open water in nearly 16 months.
That’s because, the ship has been undergoing her post shakedown availability at the Huntington Ingalls Newport News Shipbuilding, after being towed to the yard “dead stick” on July 15, 2018.
The yard period was originally slated wrap up this past July, but was extended as officials hit snags in the repairs and reworks as the ship went through final stages of completion. The ship has been plagued with cost over runs and issues with the much of the new technology being installed on board — the most ever in a first-in-class ship.
The main question in the air is what happens now. Lawmakers have pummeled Navy officials, including Secretary of the Navy Richard Spencer about Ford’s delays, cost overruns and issues with new technology.
Those officials are taking a hard look at what’s next and if there’s enough time for Ford to meet remaining milestones and necessary to deploy sometime in 2022 — which as of now is still the target, officials tell Defense and Aerospace report.
“The post-PSA schedule is under review,” said Capt. Danny Hernandez, spokesman for Jim Guerts, the Navy’s assistant secretary for research, development and acquisition. “Remaining work will be completed at the appropriate points in the post-PSA schedule to support initial deployment.”
Officially, the post-shakedown period won’t end until the ship returns from this at-sea period off the Virginia coast.
While underway, the the crew and shipyard workers will run what Hernandez described as a “comprehensive sequence of evolutions” that will “test and validate systems maintained or modified during the extended maintenance period.”
While in the yard the ship’s combat systems were installed, construction of the advanced weapon elevators began and the remaining galley spaces were outfitted and brought online.
In addition, upgrades were were made to the Electromagnetic Aircraft Launch System as well as the Aadvanced Arresting gear, too. In addition, many discrepancies identified during testing were rectified and the rest of the ship’s 304 berthing spaces were completed.
“Following the PSA, the CVN78 will enter a Post Delivery Test and Trial period to certify fuel systems, conduct aircraft compatibility testing, certify the flight deck, and test the combat systems installed aboard the ship,” Hernandez told Defense and Aerospace Report.
A big remaining issue are the 11 Advanced Weapons Elevators, which were originally expected to be up and running once the ship left the yard.
Instead, just four of them have are totally up and running as the ship heads back to sea, Hernandez said. Turned over to the crew include upper stage elevators one, two and three as well as the ship’s utility elevator. The first two were finished earlier this calendar year and the other two in the past week. The rest, he said will be up and running and turned over to the ship within the next 18-months, in time for the ship to begin working up for deployment. .
“The Navy is prioritizing completion of the elevators required for moving ordnance in support of Post Delivery Test and Trials,” Hernandez said. “Completion of the lower stage elevators one and five will give the ship the capability to move ordnance from a forward and aft magazine complex to the flight deck, which will support crew training and certification during Post Delivery Test and Trials.”
The road to a deployment by sometime in 2022 will have other yet to be slated milestones such as “Post Delivery Test & Trials, Full Ship Shock Trials, a Planned Incremental Availability,” he said. Once those are completed, the ship will start working up for its initial deployment.
“After a challenging post-shakedown availability at Newport News Shipbuilding, the crew is excited to turn their hardhats in and get Warship 78 back out to sea,” said Capt. J.J. Cummings, Ford’s commanding officer said in a Navy press release.
The aircraft carrier Gerald R. Ford moves out into the Chesapeake Bay, heading to sea aftera 15-month post shakedown yard period. (Mark D. Faram/wordsnpics)
“I am extremely proud of our sailors and the remarkable work ethic they have demonstrated over the last 15 months. It is their energy, enthusiasm and grit that has gotten our ship to this point, and it will be their motivation and resiliency that will fuel our success during post-delivery test and trial.”
To get into an at-sea mindset after such a long break, the Ford’s crew did a five-day “Fast Cruise.” The daily routine is exactly the same as when underway, even though the ship is still tied up to a pier. During those days, the crew worked through simulated at-sea training scenarios.
“After a challenging post-shakedown availability at Newport News Shipbuilding, the crew is excited to turn their hardhats in and get Warship 78 back out to sea,” said Capt. J.J. Cummings, Ford’s commanding officer. “I am extremely proud of our Sailors and the remarkable work ethic they have demonstrated over the last 15 months. It is their energy, enthusiasm and grit that has gotten our ship to this point, and it will be their motivation and resiliency that will fuel our success during post-delivery test and trial.”
The ship is expected to return to Naval Station Norfolk, and “enter a post delivery test and trials period to certify fuel systems, conduct aircraft compatibility testing, certify the flight deck, and test the combat systems installed aboard the ship,” Hernandez said.
Following the PSA, the CVN78 will enter a Post Delivery Test and Trial period to certify fuel systems, conduct aircraft compatibility testing, certify the flight deck, and test the combat systems installed aboard the ship.
“I am proud of the crew’s efforts to get USS Gerald R. Ford back out to sea,” said Secretary of the Navy Richard V. Spencer. “The Navy has diligently tackled issues associated with this first-in-class ship and will continue to do so. All are eager to demonstrate Ford’s capacity to deliver combat power. There is more work to do, but this is a great milestone.”
