NEWPORT NEWS, Va., Feb. 22, 2018 -- Huntington Ingalls Industries (NYSE:HII) announced today that its Newport News Shipbuilding division has built 70 percent of the structures necessary to complete the nuclear-powered aircraft carrier John F. Kennedy (CVN 79).
Like its predecessor, the first-in-class USS Gerald R. Ford (CVN 78), Kennedy is being built with a modular construction technique where smaller sections of the ship are welded together to form larger structures called superlifts. The superlifts are pre-outfitted and hoisted into Dry Dock 12—where the ship is being built—by the company’s 1,050-metric ton gantry crane.
Shipbuilders have successfully erected 317 lifts since the ship’s keel was laid in August 2015. Kennedy is on track to be completed with 447 total lifts.
The recent 806-metric ton superlift consisted of 17 individual units and was about 171 feet long and about 92 feet wide. The structure comprises berthing areas, electrical equipment rooms and workshops and took 18 months to build.
A video and photos of the superlift are available at: https://newsroom.huntingtoningalls.com/releases/aircraft-carrier-jfk-structural-milestone.
“This superlift is in the forward part of the ship, about halfway between the bow and midship,” said Mike Butler, program director of CVN 79. “It represents one of the key build strategy changes for Kennedy: building superlifts that are larger and more complete before they are erected on the ship. We are pleased with how construction on the Kennedy is progressing, and we look forward to additional milestones as we inch closer to christening of the ship.”
Kennedy is scheduled to launch in 2020.
Huntington Ingalls Industries is America’s largest military shipbuilding company and a provider of professional services to partners in government and industry. For more than a century, HII’s Newport News and Ingalls shipbuilding divisions in Virginia and Mississippi have built more ships in more ship classes than any other U.S. naval shipbuilder. HII’s Technical Solutions division provides a wide range of professional services through its Fleet Support, Integrated Missions Solutions, Nuclear & Environmental, and Oil & Gas groups. Headquartered in Newport News, Virginia, HII employs nearly 38,000 people operating both domestically and internationally. For more information, visit:
- HII on the web: www.huntingtoningalls.com
- HII on Facebook: www.facebook.com/HuntingtonIngallsIndustries
- HII on Twitter: twitter.com/hiindustries
Contact:
Duane Bourne
[email protected]
(757) 380-3581


Weight-Loss Drug Ads Take Over the Super Bowl as Pharma Embraces Direct-to-Consumer Marketing
American Airlines CEO to Meet Pilots Union Amid Storm Response and Financial Concerns
Macquarie Group Shares Jump as Third-Quarter Trading Conditions Improve Across Key Units
Innovent Biologics Shares Rally on New Eli Lilly Oncology and Immunology Deal
Canadian Airlines Suspend Cuba Flights Amid Jet Fuel Shortage and U.S. Sanctions
Missouri Judge Dismisses Lawsuit Challenging Starbucks’ Diversity and Inclusion Policies
Standard Chartered Names Peter Burrill as Interim Group CFO Following Diego De Giorgi’s Exit
American Airlines CEO to Meet Pilots Union Amid Storm Response and Financial Concerns
Indian Refiners Scale Back Russian Oil Imports as U.S.-India Trade Deal Advances
Washington Post Publisher Will Lewis Steps Down After Layoffs
SpaceX Pivots Toward Moon City as Musk Reframes Long-Term Space Vision
Taiwan Says Moving 40% of Semiconductor Production to the U.S. Is Impossible
Anta Sports Expands Global Footprint With Strategic Puma Stake
Uber Ordered to Pay $8.5 Million in Bellwether Sexual Assault Lawsuit
Kroger Set to Name Former Walmart Executive Greg Foran as Next CEO
TrumpRx Website Launches to Offer Discounted Prescription Drugs for Cash-Paying Americans
Trump Backs Nexstar–Tegna Merger Amid Shifting U.S. Media Landscape 



