CVN-78 and CVN-79 are the first two ships in the Navy's new Gerald R. Ford (CVN-78) class of nuclear-powered aircraft carriers. CVN-78 was procured in FY2008 and is scheduled to enter service in 2015. The ship's procurement cost is estimated in the proposed FY2010 budget at $10,846 million in then-year dollars -- $389 million (about 3.7%) more than the estimate in the FY2009 budget. Although CVN-78 was procured in FY2008, it is being funded with 4-year incremental funding across FY2008-FY2011. The proposed FY2010 requests $739.3 million in procurement funding to help complete the ship's procurement cost. The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) reported in June 2008 that it estimates that CVN-78 will cost about $900 million more than the Navy estimates, and that if 'CVN-78 experienced cost growth similar to that of other lead ships that the Navy has purchased in the past 10 years, costs could be much higher still.' The Government Accountability Office (GAO) and other observers have expressed concern that difficulties in developing the CVN-78's new electromagnetic aircraft launch system (EMALS) could delay the schedule for building the ship and increase the ship's construction cost. CVN-79 was scheduled under the FY2009 budget to be procured in FY2012. Under the proposed FY2010 budget, the ship's procurement would be deferred one year, to FY2013. CVN-79's procurement cost was estimated in the FY2009 budget at about $9.2 billion in then-year dollars. The ship has been receiving advance procurement funding since FY2007. The proposed FY2010 budget requests $484.4 million in AP funding for the ship. (The FY2009 budget had projected that about $807 million would be requested in FY2010.) Deferring CVN-79's procurement to FY2013 may have increased its estimated procurement cost, and could also increase the cost of Virginia-class submarines under construction at the same shipyard.
Navy Ford (CVN-78) Class Aircraft Carrier Program: Background and Issues for Congress. Updated May 20, 2009
2009
13 pages
Report
Keine Angabe
Englisch
Business & Economics , Quality Control & Reliability , Marine Engineering , Logistics Military Facilities & Supplies , Cost estimates , Naval procurement , Shipbuilding , Naval budgets , Aircraft carriers , Scheduling , Nuclear powered ships , Replacement , Shipyards , Life cycle costs , Legislation , Radar equipment , Industrial production , Catapults , Retirement , Defense industry , Military force levels , Delay , Cvn-78 class vessels , Cvn-79 class vessels , Cost growth , Schedule delays , Cvn-80 class vessels , Ford-class aircraft carriers , Procurement costs , Cost caps , Emals(Electromagnetic aircraft launch system) , Ngsb(Northrop grumman shipbuilding) , Legislative waivers , Dual band radar