Tag Archives: USS John F. Kennedy (CVN 79)

JFK and the Salty Dogs Bring in Navy’s 251st in Style

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The future USS John F. Kennedy (CVN 79) marked a milestone on October 13 (the Navy’s official birthday) by recovering her first aircraft, an F-35C Lightning II assigned to the “Salty Dogs” of Air Test and Evaluation Squadron (VX) 23.

A U.S. Navy F-35C Lightning II, attached to the “Salty Dogs” of Air Test and Evaluation Squadron (VX) 23, makes an arrested landing on the flight deck aboard PCU John F. Kennedy (CVN 79), marking the first time an F-35C lands on a Ford-class aircraft carrier. John F. Kennedy is underway conducting Aircraft Compatibility Testing, which assesses the ship’s aircraft launch and recovery equipment with U.S. Navy aircraft. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist Seaman Ka

It was the first F-35C recovery aboard a Ford-class carrier.

That is important, as just four of the Navy’s 11 carriers, all Nimitz-class, can operate the F-35C: Carl Vinson, Theodore Roosevelt, Abraham Lincoln, and George Washington

Two F-35 test pilots from Air Test and Evaluation Squadron Two Three (VX-23), Naval Air Warfare Center Aircraft Division (NAWCAD), fly F-35C Lightning II fighter aircraft to the PCU John F. Kennedy (CVN 79) in the Western Atlantic Oct. 13, 2026. 

An F-35 test pilot from Air Test and Evaluation Squadron Two Three (VX-23), Naval Air Warfare Center Aircraft Division (NAWCAD), flies an F-35C Lightning II fighter aircraft to the PCU John F. Kennedy (CVN 79) in the Western Atlantic on Oct. 13, 2026. 

A U.S. Navy F-35C Lightning II, attached to the “Salty Dogs” of Air Test and Evaluation Squadron (VX) 23, makes an arrested landing on the flight deck aboard PCU John F. Kennedy (CVN 79), marking the first time an F-35C lands on a Ford-class aircraft carrier. 

Now roughly 99 percent complete following sea trials in August, Kennedy received preliminary Navy acceptance on 29 September 29 and moved to Norfolk Naval Station to begin crew training and system testing.

Shipbuilders are finalizing certification for the carrier’s last four Advanced Weapons Elevators (AWEs) and Advanced Arresting Gear (AAG) ahead of an adjusted formal delivery date and commissioning in March 2027.

The Grand old Dame of the Fleet isn’t Ready to Clock Out Just Yet

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Twenty-six ships from 13 partner and allied nations steam in formation with Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS Nimitz (CVN 68) during a multinational maritime exercise as part of Fleet Exercise (FLEETEX) 250 in the Atlantic Ocean, June 25, 2026. 

We covered the “final” cruise of the class-leading, bar-setting USS Nimitz earlier this year, and the prospect that the 51-year-old flattop, the oldest CVN in the world since 2017, could linger as a training carrier for a while.

AVTN-68, if you will.

With the carrier not scheduled for decommissioning until March 2027, when the recently delivered PCU USS John F. Kennedy (CVN 79) would clock in, Nimitz could be very busy for the next five months or more.

Per Navy PAO:

During its first underway period since completing a homeport shift to Norfolk, Va. in July, Nimitz-Class aircraft carrier USS Nimitz (CVN 68) conducted its Precision Approach Landing Systems (PALS) certification, Oct. 5-8.

PALS, supported by the ship’s combat systems department and Carrier Air Traffic Controller Center (CATCC), aids pilots as they execute night or bad weather landings, guiding pilots to a good starting position for approaches; and is a requirement for ships to conduct flight operations.

In addition to the certification of Nimitz’ PALS equipment, Sailors used the underway as an opportunity to conduct training in preparation for future at sea operations, including aircraft recovery, damage control, propulsion and other drills.

This certification and training readies Nimitz for future underway periods such as those in support of east coast carrier qualifications (CQ). CQ’s are an important milestone in the training of student naval aviators, serving as their first opportunity to land on the flight deck of an operational aircraft carrier.

Nimitz is scheduled to conduct multiple upcoming CQ’s in support of Commander, Naval Air Force Atlantic.

Nimitz is currently homeported in Naval Station Norfolk as part of Carrier Strike Group 8.

They could always just let the old girl roam the Virginia Capes forever. An electron-powered Flying Dutchman. Steaming lazy broad figure eights for CQs until the end of time. Manned by the ghosts of CVWs past.

With that, see these Platoon Daddy graphics for reference.

HST out, JFK (almost) in

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With a $20 billion outlay of taxpayer dollars this week, the Navy is getting two flattops, kinda.

This week, the service issued a big-fat Refueling and Complex Overhaul award to HII in Newport News for USS Harry S. Truman (CVN 75). The eighth Nimitz-class aircraft carrier was built at Newport News over 54 months, from November 1993 to June 1998, for $4.5B at the time.

She returned from her last deployment (her 12th) in June 2025 and has obviously been prepping for her RCOH since then

USS Harry S. Truman (CVN 75) Arrival for RCOH

Her RCOH, which will give her another 25-30 years of life, is expected to run (at least) 48 months until November 2031 and cost just under $5.2B.

The Navy and HII, as shown in the images above, have been doing a lot of advance work to meet those 48 months, or perhaps even cut it shorter.

Per HII

“We’ve taken a proactive approach, from ordering long lead-time materials to conducting thousands of inspections and preliminary work, to ensure the RCOH of USS Harry S. Truman is successful,” said Bryan Caccavale, NNS vice president of program management. “This extensive engineering and construction project to ready the ship to rejoin the fleet is a team effort, across shipbuilders, suppliers and our Navy partners, and we are honored to do our part.”

Per DOD

Huntington Ingalls Inc., Newport News, Virginia, is awarded a $5,099,973,132 fixed-ceiling incentive contract for the accomplishment of the USS Harry S. Truman (CVN 75) refueling and complex overhaul. This contract includes options which, if exercised, would bring the cumulative value to $5,183,380,744. Work will be performed in Newport News, Virginia and is expected to be completed by November 2031.Fiscal 2026 shipbuilding and conversion (Navy) funds in the amount of $547,826,087 will be obligated at time of award and will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. In accordance with 10 U.S. Code 3204(a)(1), this contract was not competitively procured. Only one responsible source, Huntington Ingalls Inc., Newport News, Virginia, has the knowledge, experience, and facilities required to accomplish this without an unacceptable disruption of Navy-wide overhaul and repair schedule. Portfolio Acquisition Executive Maritime, Washington, D.C., is the contracting activity (N00024-26-C-2175).

JFK, inbound

Also this week, HII announced that it had achieved preliminary acceptance of the future USS John F. Kennedy (CVN 79), the second Ford-class carrier, and, so far, has cost $13.2B.

Preliminary acceptance, the final step before formal delivery to the U.S. Navy, allows the Navy to begin underway test and evaluation of Kennedy’s unique systems and for the crew to gain operational proficiency. CVN 79 successfully completed acceptance trials in August.

JFK is expected to commission in March 2027.

Where are the other carriers?

The Theodore Roosevelt Carrier Strike Group with CVW-11 aboard just got underway from the West Coast, bound for the Middle East, replacing her sister, the exhausted Abraham Lincoln, which has been underway for over 300 days.

USS George H.W. Bush and sister USS George Washington remain in and around the 5th Fleet’s AOR, conducting operations against Iran.

USS Carl Vinson is in San Diego and just completed her eight-month Planned Incremental Availability (PIA) in July. Expect her to deploy soon.

USS Dwight D. Eisenhower (Ike) is working up along the Virginia Coast, and recently lost a VAQ-130 Growler but not its crew.

Nimitz, the grand old lady, has officially finished her last cruise but is still “around” for training tasks out of Norfolk as she heads towards deactivation. Expect her to remain loosely available but running on two angry electrons duct-taped inside her reactors until JFK commissions.

Offline: 

USS Ronald Reagan is wrapping up a major 18-month Docking Planned Incremental Availability (DPIA) maintenance period at the Puget Sound Naval Shipyard, where she has been since last Spring.

USS Gerald R. Ford, suffering from a brutal deployment and a fire that was apparently bigger than anyone knew, just started her own at least eight-month PIA at the Norfolk Naval Shipyard.

USS John C. Stennis is still mired in her RCOH at Newport News, which she started back in May 2021. Her expected redelivery is targeted for late 2026 / early 2027.

USS JFK inches forward to completion

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The future USS John F. Kennedy (CVN 79) has returned to HII-Newport News Shipbuilding following successful builder’s sea trials. A team of shipbuilders and the CVN 79 crew spent a week at sea testing important ship systems and components for the first time.

The good news is that she was able to complete the trials without having to be towed back halfway through, and no apparent fires were observed.

Still, she looks beautiful.

The second Gerald R. Ford-class super carrier has cost some $11.4 billion thus far and, ordered in January 2009, is scheduled to be delivered to the Navy in March 2027, a gestation period of “just” 18 years, somehow twice as long as the class leader, Ford.

The plan is for the third Ford, the future USS Enterprise (CVN-80), to be delivered in 2030, only 14 years after HII was given the first award for her advanced planning.

We gotta do better, guys.

The Orange Crush Rides again

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HII announced this week that its Newport News Shipbuilding division recently began topside testing of the electromagnetic aircraft launch system catapult on the future Ford-class supercarrier USS John F. Kennedy (CVN 79), something which was supposed to have started last year. JFK was awarded in 2009 (!) laid down in 2015, christened in 2019, and is scheduled to be delivered in 2025.

Anyway, it is always fun to see test sleds weighing up to 80,000 pounds go from zero to 150 knots in 300 feet and careen Wile E. Coyote-style into the James River.

Roll that beautiful bean footage.