VIDEO: Navy’s Newest Carrier USS Gerald R. Ford Faces Toughest Test Yet
By: Sam LaGrone
March 11, 2023 7:54 PM • Updated: March 12, 2023 10:37 PM
A sailor handling fuel lines on the deck of USS Gerald R. Ford (CVN-78) on March 2, 2023. USNI News Photo
ABOARD AIRCRAFT CARRIER USS GERALD R. FORD IN THE ATLANTIC OCEAN – The pressure is high and getting higher for the crew of the U.S. Navy’s newest aircraft carrier.
Since it was commissioned in 2017, the Navy has slowly excised gremlins from close to two dozen new systems aboard USS Gerald R. Ford (CVN-78). After five years of faults, troubleshooting and repairs, Carrier Air Wing 8, its escorts and Carrier Strike Group 12 will embark on their first worldwide deployment, joining the fleet in earnest as a fully functional warship.
But before it deploys – likely to the Mediterranean to continue the deterrence mission against Russia – the ship’s company of 2,700 sailors, the 1,500 sailors of the air wing and five surface ships will face a challenge tougher than Congressional criticism.
Last week, the carrier left Naval Station Norfolk on its composite training unit exercise (COMPTUEX). The complex exercise is the last hurdle before the unit is “certified for national tasking,” or able to deploy throughout the world at the direction of the president via the Secretary of Defense.
https://news.usni.org/2023/03/11/video-navys-newest-carrier-uss-gerald-r-ford-faces-toughest-test-yet
