Amidst the ever escalating tensions in Northern Asia, USA has revealed their $13 billion naval beast, which according to the POTUS, is described as:
” 100,000 tonne message that has been sent to the world.”
This message was sent in the form of the aircraft carrier USS Gerald R Ford– a massive bump to the already imposing US Navy’s fleet.
“Wherever this vessel cuts through the horizons, our allies will rest easy and our enemies will shake with fear, because everyone will know that America is coming and America is coming strong,” Trump said.
The USS Gerald R Ford was called “an incredible work of art” by President Trump, who also boasted that it will eventually host thousands of sailors and crew members.
While standing on the steamy hangar bay on the main deck, Trump told thousands of service members and guests,
“American might is second to none and we’re getting bigger and better and stronger every day of my administration. That I can tell you.”
Construction of the USS Gerald R Ford began back in 2009, and the masterpiece was finished by September 2015, costing a total of US$10.5 billion. Although the project was ridden by delays and budget overruns due to ship’s advanced systems and technology that included electromagnetic launch systems for jets and drones, the ship is now finally ready for action.
The warship is accompanied by a smaller island sitting farther back on the ship that allows quicker refueling, rearming, and plane relaunching than ever before! An onboard nuclear power plant allows cruising speeds of more than 30 knots and can run USS Gerald R Ford for 20 years without refueling, making it truly unstoppable!
The vessel has already cleared sea trials in April, but it will now go through a host of tests and workups at sea before deployment, a routine that will take US$780 million and four more years to complete, according to congressional auditors.
USS Gerald R Ford is currently docked at Naval Station Norfolk and will house about 2600 sailors, saving the Navy more than US$4 billion over the ship’s 50-year lifespan.
The air wing to support the carrier can add more personnel to the ship, over 4600 crew members to be precise.
The deployment plans are not clear, but given the tense situation around Korea, the carrier will probably be used as a massive technological bump for US presence in the Pacific.
