Launch-and-Landing Failures Add to $13 Billion Ship’s Troubles
By Anthony Capaccio
January 30, 2019, 4:00 AM EST
Gerald R. Ford had 20 failures in sea operations, tester says
Navy already faces problems with carrier’s munitions elevators
The Navy’s costliest warship, the $13 billion Gerald R. Ford, had 20 failures of its aircraft launch-and-landing systems during operations at sea, according to the Pentagon’s testing office.
The previously undisclosed failures with the electromagnetic systems made by General Atomics occurred during more than 740 at-sea trials since the aircraft carrier’s delivery in May 2017 despite praise from Navy officials of its growing combat capabilities. The Navy must pay to fix such flaws under a “cost-plus†development contract.
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2019-01-30/launch-and-landing-failures-add-to-13-billion-ship-s-troubles
