First steel cut for future aircraft carrier Doris Miller

On 25 August, Huntington Ingalls Industries (HII) hosted the ceremonial cutting of the first steel for the future Gerald R. Ford-class aircraft carrier, Doris Miller.

Doris Miller’s keel will be laid in 2026, and the ship delivered to the USN in 2032. HII’s Newport News site is currently performing early manufacturing of the vessel.

Thomas Bledsoe, great-nephew of the ship’s namesake, gave the order to cut the steel. Officials, shipbuilders and relatives of Doris Miller then signed the first plate.

The ship’s namesake earned the Navy Cross for heroic actions while serving aboard USS West Virginia during the attack on Pearl Harbour.

Doris Miller is the second ship of a two-carrier contract awarded to HII in January 2019 for the design and construction of two Ford-class vessels.

The Ford-class carrier features software-controlled electromagnetic catapults and weapons elevators and requires twice the electrical capacity of the preceding Nimitz-class.

Earlier this month, HII has passed a significant milestone in the construction of the John F. Kennedy carrier, one of four Ford-class carriers ordered by the USN.

More than 80% of the total work on the John F. Kennedy has been completed; delivery to the USN is scheduled for 2024.