The Americans are actively building new aircraft carriers to replace the Nimitz-type ships. Yesterday, on August 26, the press service of Huntington Ingalls Industries announced that a solemn ceremony of cutting steel for the future Doris Miller aircraft carrier was held at its Newport News shipyard in Virginia.
Doris Miller (CVN 81) will be the fourth Gerald R. Ford-class aircraft carrier. The first of them, the USS Gerald R. Ford (CVN 78), has passed all the stages of testing and is due to go on its first combat deployment in six months. The second-John F. Kennedy (CVN 79) - is at the final stage of completion. The third-Enterprise (CVN-80) - is actively being built and should enter service by 2028.
Steel cutting ceremony for the aircraft carrier Doris Miller (CVN 81)
Image source: huntingtoningalls.com
In total, ten ships of the Gerald R. Ford type are planned for construction. The new aircraft carriers will replace the Nimitz-type ships in service, which have been in operation since 1975. Gerald R. Ford is the third generation of nuclear-powered aircraft carriers serving in the US Navy. The first of them was the Enterprise type, but due to the high cost of the ship, the program was limited to a single copy that served from 1962 to 2012 (a total of six aircraft carriers were planned to be built).
Gerald R. Ford type aircraft carriers have a length of 337 m, a maximum width of 78 m, a displacement of about 100,000 tons and are designed for 90 aircraft and helicopters. According to the technical description, it is planned to place F-35, F/A-18E/F Super Hornet, EA-18G Growler, as well as MH-60R/S helicopters on these ships.
