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Advance construction started with a "first cut of steel" ceremony at Northrop Grumman Shipbuilding, Newport News, Va., 25 February 2011. CVN-79 is the second in a new class of ships designed to replace Enterprise and Nimitz-class carriers and save more than $5 billion in total ownership costs during her planned 50-year service life, when compared to a Nimitz. Full construction of CVN-79 is anticipated to begin in late 2012 with delivery to the U.S. Navy scheduled for 2020.
Secretary of the Navy Ray Mabus announced, 27 May 2011, CVN-79 would be named John F. Kennedy to honor the 35th President of the United States and pay tribute to his service in the Navy, in the government, and to the nation. Congressman John Shadegg (R-AZ) had proposed naming this ship (or the subsequent CVN-80) Barry M. Goldwater, after the late senator from Arizona; an online petition had been set up to name CVN-79 Enterprise.
According to the DoD Fiscal 2013 Budget Proposal (13 February 2012), "The ordering date of the future John F. Kennedy (CVN-79) has not changed; signing of the detailed design and construction contract in FY13 will remain on schedule. The construction schedule will be moved back two years in order to decrease pressure on the shipbuilding budget without impacting force structure. CVN-79 is the numerical replacement for USS Nimitz (CVN-68) and will be delivered no later than 2022 in order to maintain the 11-carrier force structure."
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| Namesake |
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 NS027900 |
54k | CVN-79 is named after John Fitzgerald Kennedy (1917–1963), 35th President of the United States of America (1961–1963). (Read about LT John F. Kennedy, USNR, WW2 service at the Naval History & Heritage Command website.) For many observers, Kennedy's presidency represented the ascendance of youthful idealism in the aftermath of World War II. JFK was the youngest person elected US President, and the youngest to die in office. Portrait photo of President John F. Kennedy at his desk in the Oval Office, White House, Washington, D.C. This is the first White House photograph made of the President at his desk. Photo by Abbie Rowe. |
Courtesy of the John F. Kennedy Library & Museum, Boston | |
| Design & Construction |
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145k | One of the first pieces of steel is cut for CVN-79, the second ship in the Gerald R. Ford-class, during a ceremony at Northrop Grumman Shipbuilding, 25 February 2011. Photo by John Whalen, courtesy of Northrop Grumman Shipbuilding. U.S. Navy photo # 110225-O-XX000-001. |
Ron Reeves | |
 NS027901a |
137k | Ceremony participants signed the 33,000-pound piece of steel before it was cut. Pictured from left are Mike Shawcross, vice president, Gerald R. Ford-class Engineering and CVN-79 Construction, Northrop Grumman Shipbuilding; U.S. Navy CAPT Kevin Terry, supervisor of shipbuilding, Newport News; The Honorable Madeline McMillan, vice mayor, City of Newport News; RADM Michael McMahon, program executive officer for aircraft carriers; Rep. Bobby Scott (Va-3); Rep. Wittman (Va-1); Rep. Rigell (Va-2); and Matt Mulherin, vice president and general manager, Northrop Grumman Shipbuilding. Photo by Chris Oxley. |
Courtesy of Northrop Grumman Shipbuilding | |
 NS027902 |
71k | Secretary of the Navy (SECNAV), the Honorable Ray Mabus, announces the name of the next nuclear-powered aircraft carrier as USS John F. Kennedy (CVN-79) at the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum, Boston, MA, 29 May 2011. U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Kevin S. O'Brien (# 110529-N-UH963-087). |
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 NS027902a |
106k | Caroline Kennedy, daughter of the 35th President, John F. Kennedy, addresses friends and family after the Secretary of the Navy (SECNAV), the Honorable Ray Mabus, announced the name of the next nuclear-powered aircraft carrier as USS John F. Kennedy (CVN-79) at the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum, Boston, MA, 29 May 2011. U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Kevin S. O'Brien (# 110529-N-UH963-134). |
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 NS027903 |
404k | The aircraft carrier John F. Kennedy (CVN-79) will be the second ship in the Gerald R. Ford class, the Navy's newest class of nuclear aircraft carriers. The ship's first steel was cut in December 2010, and delivery to the Navy is scheduled no later than 2022. NS027903: U.S. Navy photo illustration courtesy of Newport News Shipbuilding (# 110623-N-ZZ999-203), 23 June 2011. NS027903a: U.S. Navy photo illustration courtesy of Newport News Shipbuilding (# 110623-N-ZZ999-204), 23 June 2011. |
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 NS027903a |
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109k | A unit for the future aircraft carrier John F. Kennedy (CVN-79) rests on the assembly platen at Newport News Shipbuilding, Newport News, VA, 5 March 2014. This is the second ship of the Gerald R. Ford class of aircraft carriers being built by the shipyard for the U.S. Navy. U.S. Navy photo courtesy of Huntington Ingalls Industries by Chris Oxley (# 140305-N-ZZ999-001). |
Robert M. Cieri | |
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This page was created and is maintained by Fabio Peña
Last update: 3 June 2014