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Northrop Grumman reached its first
construction milestone in the life of the new-generation
aircraft carrier, CVN 21. The company cut one
of the first pieces of steel, a 15-ton plate for
a side shell unit of CVN 78, the first ship of
the CVN 21 program.
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CVN 21 Steel Cut ceremony participants
included (from left) Rear Adm. H. Denby Starling
II, commander, naval air force, U.S. Atlantic
Fleet U.S. Navy; Rear Adm. David Architzel, program
executive officer for aircraft carriers, U.S.
Navy; Joe S. Frank, mayor of Newport News; Mike
Petters, president, Northrop Grumman Newport News;
Rep. Jo Ann Davis (R-Va.-1st District); Rep. Bobby
Scott (D-Va.-3rd District); and Capt. Michael
E. McMahon, commanding officer, supervisor of
shipbuilding, conversion and repair, Newport News,
U.S. Navy.
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Rear Adm. David Architzel, program
executive officer for aircraft carriers, U.S.
Navy, was among the ceremony participants who
signed the CVN 78 steel plate before it was cut.
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Photos by John
Whalen, Northrop Grumman Newport News
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NEWPORT NEWS, Va. -- Aug. 11, 2005 --
Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE: NOC) has reached
its first construction milestone in the life of the
new-generation aircraft carrier, CVN 21. The company
cut one of the first pieces of steel, a 15-ton plate
for a side shell unit of CVN 78, the first ship of the
CVN 21 program.
Design work on the CVN 21 is underway
at Northrop Grumman’s Newport News sector, with
the full construction contract anticipated in 2007.
Advance construction began in 2005 to allow shipbuilders
to test the design-build strategy before overall construction
begins in 2007. Each ship of the class is valued at
approximately $8 billion.
The ceremony also served as the grand
opening for the shipyard’s new heavy-plate bay
facility, one of several new facilities built for CVN
21 construction. This facility houses some of the most
technologically advanced machines in the shipbuilding
industry, including the ESAB Avenger 3-Telerex burning
machine used in the steel-cut ceremony. Other new CVN
21 facilities include the covered modular-assembly facility,
covered modular-outfitting facility and unit-assembly
facility. These facilities will allow employees to work
uninterrupted by the weather, and will house additional
cranes to build pre-outfitting units to a higher degree
of completion than on all previous carriers.
Ceremony participants included Mike Petters,
president, Northrop Grumman Newport News; Rep. Jo Ann
Davis (R-Va.-1st District); Rep. Bobby Scott (D-Va.-3rd
District); Rear Adm. David Architzel, program executive
officer for aircraft carriers, U.S. Navy; Rear Adm.
H. Denby Starling II, commander, naval air force, U.S.
Atlantic Fleet U.S. Navy; Capt. Michael E. McMahon,
commanding officer, supervisor of shipbuilding, conversion
and repair, Newport News, U.S. Navy; Joe S. Frank, Mayor
of Newport News; and employees from the CVN 21 program.
“CVN 78 will have improved capabilities
over the Nimitz-class, a class of ships that
has proven very capable,” said Petters. “CVN
21 is designed for efficiency over the 50-year lifecycle
while providing America with the kind of forward presence
unique to aircraft carriers and so critical in today’s
uncertain world.”
Innovations for the CVN 21 program include
an enhanced flight deck capable of increased sortie
rates, improved weapons movement, a redesigned island,
a new nuclear power plant, reduced manning and allowance
for future technologies. These and many other evolutionary
features are being developed to maximize efficiency
and reduce acquisition costs, manning and weight while
enhancing the ship’s operational capabilities.
Design and technology insertion costs are approximately
$5.6 billion spread over the class of ships.
“Today celebrates a significant
investment in the future of Newport News,” said
Architzel. “I can tell you there are no better
warfighting platforms in the world than those that are
built at Newport News."
Northrop Grumman Newport News, headquartered
in Newport News, Va., is the nation's sole designer,
builder and refueler of nuclear-powered aircraft carriers
and one of only two companies capable of designing and
building nuclear-powered submarines. Newport News also
provides after-market services for a wide array of naval
and commercial vessels. The Newport News sector employs
about 19,000 people.
For additional information about the
CVN 21 program, please visit www.nn.northropgrumman.com/cvn21.
CONTACT:
Jennifer Dellapenta
Northrop Grumman Newport News
757-380-3558
Jennifer.Dellapenta@ngc.com
