USN picks contractor for CVN 79 single-phase delivery
Congress mandates that USS John F. Kennedy must be capable of operating F-35Cs
Newport News Shipbuilding, a division of Huntington Ingalls Industries (HII), has been awarded a contract modification worth up to $284.29 million by US Naval Sea Systems Command to implement single-phase delivery and F-35C capabilities for the Gerald R. Ford-class aircraft carrier USS John F. Kennedy (CVN 79).
‘The Navy is transitioning to a single-phase delivery approach to meet both Fleet requirements and a congressional mandate of ensuring that CVN 79 is capable of operating and deploying Joint Strike Fighter (F-35C) aircraft before completing the post-shakedown availability,’ the DoD noted on 2 November.
Completion of this single-phase delivery is planned for 30 June 2024.
USS John F. Kennedy was launched in December 2019. Shephard Defence Insight expects the aircraft carrier to be delivered to the USN in September 2024, before the retirement of USS Nimitz.
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