22 July, 2017
President Donald Trump will deliver remarks at the US Navy commissioning of its next generation aircraft carrier Gerald R. Ford on July 22, according to the Pentagon. After military service, Ford was elected to the House of Representatives, serving MI until he was tapped by President Richard M. Nixon to become vice-president. Ford became president after Richard Nixon stepped down amid the Watergate scandal in 1977.
The vessel completed sea trials in April but still will go through a battery of tests and workups at sea before becoming operational and ready for deployment, work that is expected to cost almost $780 million and take more than four years to complete, congressional auditors said in a report this month.
Trump, the commander in chief of the US military, will be on hand at Naval Station Norfolk in Virginia to preside over the commissioning ceremony. His daughter, Susan Ford Bales, christened the vessel in 2013.
"I am incredibly thankful for the shipyard workers and sailors who worked amazingly hard to bring this mighty ship to life".
Huntington Ingalls Industries' Newport News Shipbuilding division delivered USS Gerald R. Ford to the service branch in June following completion of acceptance trials. These innovations are expected to improve operational availability and capability compared with Nimitz-class carriers.
Ford still must go through various tests and trials of its cutting-edge technology, including new systems to launch and land fighter jets.
The Navy estimates the service branch will spend up to $43 billion on the construction of the first three Ford-class vessels to replace Nimitz-class carriers.
Media may direct queries to the Navy Office of Information at 703-697-5342.
Learn more about the naval service and life of Gerald Ford here: https://www.history.navy.mil/browse-by-topic/people/presidents/ford.html.
USS Enterprise, NCC-1701. Photo courtesy of Memory Alpha.
The new aircraft carrier is named after the 38th president of the United States. The vessel is outfitted with touchscreen navigation display in place of a traditional throttle and is equipped with a reactor plant that can power the ship for up to 20 years without refueling.
