U.S.
Next Carrier’s Cost Creeps Up After First One Hit $13.3 Billion
- USS John F. Kennedy’s cost is up 7% so far to $3.35 billion
- Huntington Ingalls falling short of goal to cut labor hours
USS Gerald Ford
Photographer: Christopher Delano/U.S. Navy/Getty Images
This article is for subscribers only.
The Navy vowed that a runaway budget wouldn’t be allowed again after the USS Gerald Ford, the first in a new class of aircraft carriers, cost a record $13.3 billion. Now, the price for the second ship is creeping up.
The service’s estimate for shipbuilder Huntington Ingalls Industries Inc. to design and construct the USS John F. Kennedy has increased to $3.58 billion, up 7% from the $3.35 billion contract awarded in 2015, according to the carrier program’s Selected Acquisition Report for fiscal 2021.