Key Points and Summary – USS Gerald R. Ford, the U.S. Navy’s first-in-class supercarrier, has moved past early cost, schedule, and technology woes to become a front-line deterrent.
-EMALS catapults, advanced weapons elevators, deep automation, larger deck space, and twin nuclear reactors enable higher sortie rates and lower life-cycle manpower costs.
(July 28, 2017) An F/A-18F Super Hornet assigned to Air Test and Evaluation Squadron (VX) 23 approaches the aircraft carrier USS Gerald R. Ford (CVN 78) for an arrested landing. The aircraft carrier is underway conducting test and evaluation operations.(U.S. Navy photo by Erik Hildebrandt/Released) 170728-N-UZ648-161
-After years of GAO and congressional scrutiny, Ford is now deployed to project stability—from Mediterranean deterrence during the Israel-Hamas crisis to dual-carrier Pacific drills.
-The lesson: first-of-kind R&D pain yielded fleetwide gains, turning Ford into a symbol of U.S. naval leadership, readiness, and scalable fifth-generation airpower at sea.
Meet USS Gerald R. Ford:
Cost overruns, schedule delays, and technology development problems were widely associated with the US Navy’s pioneering USS Ford for many years; yet, this first-of-its-kind, next-generation powerhouse carrier is now projecting US power, security, and safety throughout the world.
One could call the USS Ford an emblem of US leadership and deterrence posture, a reality that has been obscured over the years by criticisms during the carrier’s development.
The USS Gerald R. Ford now steams across the ocean with a new generation of maritime warfare technologies, including electromagnetic catapults, advanced weapons elevators, and unprecedented levels of computer automation.
Its larger deck space enables a 33-percent increase in sortie rate possibilities, and its two nuclear reactors each generate 78 megawatts of power.
Few are likely to forget the congressional concern, budget deliberations, GAO reports, and reverberating criticisms about the troubled maturation of its advanced technologies, such as its elevators and electromagnetic catapult.
There is, however, a lesser-known reality regarding the history of the USS Ford, which, upon reflection, accounts for much of the ship’s current success.
More than 10 years ago, during the height of criticism and skepticism about the USS Ford, the US Navy did what it could to defend its ambitious effort to pioneer a collection of unprecedented technologies simultaneously.
The world’s largest aircraft carrier, USS Gerald R. Ford (CVN 78), conducts flight operations in the North Sea, Aug. 23, 2025. Gerald R. Ford, a first-in-class aircraft carrier and deployed flagship of Carrier Strike Group Twelve, is on a scheduled deployment in the U.S. 6th Fleet area of operations to support the warfighting effectiveness, lethality, and readiness of U.S. Naval Forces Europe-Africa, and defend U.S., Allied and partner interests in the region. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Maxwell Orlosky)
First-in-Class Costs
Part of the cost overruns, developers explained as far back as 2013, were due to billions in non-recurring research and development costs necessary to support a “first-in-class” new kind of carrier.
Much of the dollars expended in the development of the USS Ford were, by design, expected to help propel an entire new class of Ford carriers.
The concept: Once developed, integrated, and operational, a new class of technologies would more seamlessly support a growing fleet of Ford-class carriers.
There was also a lesser-recognized long-term cost control goal associated with the USS Ford’s development: the use of new computer automation technologies throughout the ship for electronics, maintenance, measurements, and operations enables the Ford-class carriers to successfully perform their missions with fewer than 900 sailors on board.
This saves as much as $4 billion per ship throughout its entire lifespan, something that was largely overlooked 10 to 12 years ago when the USS Ford development was under heavy scrutiny.
In retrospect, it seems one might be inclined to consider that, perhaps, the massive growing pains associated with the USS Ford were worth it.
Of course, nobody would hope for cost overruns and delays, and some of them could likely have been avoided; however, the result is now greatly benefiting the US Navy, the entire Ford-class fleet, US allies, and the entire United States itself.
The technological struggles were significant as well, as the now-famous Electromagnetic Launch System (EMALS) struggled en route to becoming a first-of-its-kind smoother and steadier carrier-deck electromagnetic take-off capability, which caused much less wear and tear on jet airframes compared to a traditional steam catapult.
The electric weapons elevators also encountered developmental glitches during their years of development; yet, their successful functioning enables much faster and more efficient rearm and refuel carrier operations. This increases sortie rate, lethality, and a commensurate ability to project power as needed.
USS Ford Deploys
The USS Gerald R. Ford steamed into the Mediterranean at various points during the Israeli-Hamas conflict to, among other things, leverage “deterrence” to ensure the conflict did not expand throughout the Middle East and the world.
The Ford’s larger sortie rate and ability to deploy with as many as 90 F-35Cs support the ability to project massive 5th-generation air power, something likely considered critical in the event of a conflict with China in the Pacific.
An ability to mass, scale, and sustain a large-scale air attack from the ocean would likely prove critical in any war in the Pacific.
In fact, the US Navy has conducted “dual-carrier” training and integration exercises to “flex” the service’s ability to launch and maintain a massive, large-scale air attack campaign from the ocean in the Pacific.
About the Author: Kris Osborn
Kris Osborn is the President of Warrior Maven – Center for Military Modernization. Osborn previously served at the Pentagon as a highly qualified expert in the Office of the Assistant Secretary of the Army—Acquisition, Logistics & Technology. Osborn has also worked as an anchor and on-air military specialist at national TV networks. He has appeared as a guest military expert on Fox News, MSNBC, The Military Channel, and The History Channel. He also has a Masters Degree in Comparative Literature from Columbia University.
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