USS John F. Kennedy sails for builder sea trials as delivery set for March 2027

The US Navy's next Ford-class aircraft carrier, USS John F. Kennedy (CVN-79), launched out of Huntington Ingalls Industries' Newport News shipyard on Wednesday and has begun shipbuilder sea trials, a major milestone before Navy delivery. Huntington Ingalls Industries (HII) is overseeing the trials so its Newport News Shipbuilding division can evaluate the carrier at sea.

"These trials will test important ship systems and components at sea for the first time," Todd Corillo, HII's spokesperson for the NNS division, told Business Insider. The Kennedy previously underwent river-based propulsion testing, but builder trials are the first time the vessel leaves the yard to prove it works at sea — a reality check before the Navy takes over and conducts its own testing.

HII began construction in February 2011, laid the keel in August 2015 and reported the carrier was halfway built by June 2017. Delivery has shifted over the years, and the Kennedy is now expected to be delivered to the Navy in March 2027. In 2020 the Navy moved the build to a single-phase approach, adding years of work.

The first Ford-class carrier, USS Gerald R. Ford, struggled with integrating new technologies such as advanced arresting gear and weapons elevators, causing cost overruns and delays; the Navy says lessons from that ship were folded into later construction and have helped the Kennedy progress more quickly.

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