Future US aircraft carrier cost estimate unreliable, says government accountability agency

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The Associated Press

A composite photo illustration representing the Ford-class aircraft carrier, USS John F. Kennedy (CVN 79). The carrier, underconstruction at Newport News Shipbuilding, is the second Ford-class nuclear-powered aircraft carrier and the second U.S. Navy carrier named for the 35th U. S. President.

NEWPORT NEWS, Va. — A congressional watchdog report has recommended the U.S. Navy develop a new cost estimate for a future aircraft carrier being built in Virginia.

Local news outlets report the Government Accountability Office released a report on Tuesday saying the $11.4 billion budget for the John F. Kennedy isn’t reliable and doesn’t address lessons learned from the carrier Gerald R. Ford’s construction. The latter was delivered to the Navy nearly two years later than planned at a roughly $12.9 billion cost, or about 23 percent more than originally estimated.

The Defense Department partially agreed with the report’s recommendations.

Ford is scheduled to be commissioned this summer, while Kennedy’s expected delivery is in 2022.

Advance work is underway on the third-in-class aircraft carrier Enterprise at Newport News Shipbuilding, which is the Navy’s exclusive nuclear-powered aircraft carrier shipbuilder.

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The Associated Press