Saturday, April 7, 2018

U.S. Navy To Shock Test It's Newest Aircraft Carrier

Tug boats maneuver Pre-Commissioning Unit Gerald R. Ford (CVN 78), into the James River during the ship’s Turn Ship evolution on June 11, 2016. US Navy photo.

Diplomat: US Navy, Pentagon Agree to Shock Test $13 Billion Supercarrier

Shock trials for the U.S. Navy’s newest nuclear-powered aircraft carrier will proceed as planned.

U.S. Deputy Defense Secretary Patrick Shanahan endorsed shock testing the nuclear-powered aircraft carrier USS Gerald R. Ford (CVN-78), the lead of ship of the U.S. Navy’s latest class of carriers, in a March 26 letter to Senate Armed Services Committee Chairman John McCain, Bloomberg reports this week.

“We agree with your view that a test in normal sequence is more prudent and pragmatic,” Shanahan writes. The U.S. Department of Defense and the U.S. Navy are now in agreement to shock test the carrier’s key systems and assess how well they do under combat conditions.

“Good news from [Department of Defense] that they intend to shock test USS Gerald R. Ford,” Senator John McCain tweeted on April 5. “Full ship shock trials before first deployment will help address concerns w/reliability of unproven new technologies on board.”

Read more ....

Update #1: USS Gerald Ford Set for Shock Tests: Pentagon Overrules Navy on $13B Carrier (Sputnik)
Update #2: Navy Tries to Damage $13 Billion Carrier (24/7 Wall Street)

WNU Editor: The U.S. Navy had no choice but to comply. The political pressure from people like Senator McCain put the US Navy in a position where they could not say no.

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