The United States cannibalized the aircraft carrier Kennedy under construction in order for another such ship, Gerald R. Ford, to go on a long voyage in 2022, Defense News reports, citing a statement by a representative of the United States Navy and Captain Clay Doss.
According to him, none of the Kennedy parts that were transferred to Gerald R. Ford will affect the timing of the first one's readiness. We are talking, in particular, about the components of power plants and elevator lifts. Doss called the use of components originally intended for another ship a "project management tool."
Dwayne Bourne, a spokesman for Huntington Ingalls Industries, which is building Kennedy, said this practice is common for aircraft carriers under construction. The specialist added that the new ship, capable of accommodating fifth-generation F-35C Lightning II carrier-based fighters, should be ready by 2024.
According to Defense News, initially Gerald R. Ford was supposed to be in full combat readiness back in 2018, however, due to numerous technological difficulties and delays in the supply of components, the timing of the final readiness of the ship was postponed. From 2018 to 2021, the cost of the aircraft carrier increased from 10.5 to 13 billion dollars.
Retired American officer Bradley Martin called cannibalizing Kennedy for Gerald R. Ford a bad habit. According to him, these actions of the US Navy are alarming, as they indicate that the Pentagon does not have a reliable source of spare parts for the ship.
In July, Popular Mechanics magazine, referring to the statement of the Chief of Naval Operations of the US Navy, Admiral Michael Gilday, reported that the aircraft carrier Gerald R. Ford of the US Navy, which is the most expensive ship built in the world, turned out to be overly technological. According to the military, we are talking about 23 technological solutions that create difficulties in the operation of an aircraft carrier.
Gerald R. Ford provides for the placement of more than 4.5 thousand military and 75 aircraft. The ship is equipped with RIM-162 ESSM medium-range ship-to-air anti-aircraft missiles, ship-based anti-aircraft missile and anti-aircraft artillery systems. The displacement of the aircraft carrier is 100 thousand tons, length - 332.8 meters, width - 40.8 meters (waterline), 78 meters (flight deck). The maximum speed is 30 knots. The service life is at least 50 years. Gerald R. Ford was received by the US Navy in July 2017.
Ivan Potapov