USS Enterprise (CVN-80)

For other ships with the same name, see USS Enterprise (disambiguation).

USS Enterprise (CVN-80) will be the third Gerald R. Ford-class aircraft carrier to be built for the United States Navy.^[8][9] She will be the ninth United States naval vessel and third aircraft carrier to bear the name, and is scheduled to be in operation by 2029. Her construction began in August 2017 with a steel-cutting ceremony.^[10]

Artist's impression of the future CVN-80
History
United States
Name	Enterprise
Namesake	USS Enterprise (CVN-65)
Awarded	23 May 2016 (advance planning) 31 January 2019 (construction)
Builder	Huntington Ingalls Industries
Laid down	5 April 2022[1][2] 27 August 2022 (official)[3]
Launched	November 2025 (planned)[4]
Sponsored by	Katie Ledecky and Simone Biles
Commissioned	2029 (planned)[5]
Identification	CVN-80
Status	Under construction[6]
General characteristics
Class and type	Gerald R. Ford-class aircraft carrier
Displacement	About 100,000 long tons (100,000 tonnes) (full load)[7]
Length	1,106 ft (337 m)
Beam	134 ft (41 m)
Draft	39 ft (12 m)
Installed power	Two A1B nuclear reactors
Propulsion	Four shafts
Speed	In excess of 30 knots (56 km/h; 35 mph)
Range	Unlimited distance; 20–25 years
Complement	4,660
Armament	Surface-to-air missiles Close-in weapons systems
Aircraft carried	More than 80, approx. up to 90 combat aircraft
Aviation facilities	1,092 ft × 256 ft (333 m × 78 m) flight deck

Naming

On 1 December 2012, during the presentation of a pre-recorded speech at the inactivation ceremony for USS Enterprise (CVN-65), then-Secretary of the Navy Ray Mabus announced that CVN-80 would be named Enterprise.^[11] She will be the ninth ship and the third aircraft carrier in the history of the United States Navy to bear the name.^[9] CVN-80 will also be the first American supercarrier not to be named in honor of a person since America was commissioned in 1966. In December 2016, Mabus chose Olympic gold medalists Katie Ledecky and Simone Biles to sponsor the ship.^[12]

Hangar

The CVN-80 has a direct upgrade in hangar space from its predecessor CVN-79, the internal hangar can house up to 50 mid-sized aircraft such as the F-35C, up to 20 mid-sized helicopters such as the Sikorsky HH-60H and several more large refueling and radar surveillance aircraft.^{[citation needed]}

Construction

The ship's sponsors Simone Biles and Katie Ledecky, joined by Newport News Shipbuilding president Jennifer Boykin, sign a 35-ton steel plate used to begin the construction of Enterprise

CVN-80 is being built by Huntington Ingalls Industries' Newport News Shipbuilding in Newport News, Virginia. CVN-80 is the first aircraft carrier completely designed and built through digital platforms.^[13] The first cut of steel ceremony, marking the beginning of fabrication of the ship's components, was held on 21 August 2017,^[14] with the ship's sponsors Katie Ledecky and Simone Biles present.^[15] Construction began in advance of the purchase contract and construction award, in early 2018.^[16]

Steel from CVN-65 will be recycled and used in the construction of CVN-80.^[17][6] As of August 2022, approximately 20,000 pounds of steel from CVN-65 has been salvaged and recycled for inclusion into CVN-80,^[18] with another 15,000 pounds still to be processed, for a total of 35,000 pounds.^[13] Enterprise will also incorporate four portholes taken from CV-6, her World War II predecessor.^[19]

Enterprise will replace USS Dwight D. Eisenhower and is scheduled to be launched in November 2025,^[4] with a planned delivery date of March 2028.^[20] This date has since slipped to September 2029, citing suppliers’ slow recovery from production disruptions caused by the Covid-19 pandemic.^[21]

The ship's keel was laid, with no specific ceremony, on 5 April 2022, three weeks ahead of schedule.^[1] The shipbuilder held an official keel-laying ceremony on 27 August of the same year.^[18][3]

See also

• List of aircraft carriers of the United States Navy
• List of ships of the United States Navy named Enterprise

References

1. LaGrone, Sam (5 April 2022). "HII Lays Keel of Future Aircraft Carrier USS Enterprise". U.S. Naval Institute. Archived from the original on 6 April 2022. Retrieved 5 April 2022.
2. "Laying the Foundation for Enterprise (CVN 80) – June 2022". YouTube. 3 August 2022.
3. "HII Ceremoniously Lays Keel Of Enterprise (CVN 80) Aircraft Carrier". Huntington Ingalls Industries. 27 August 2022. Archived from the original on 7 October 2022.
4. Malone, Capt. Phillip (May 6, 2019). "Sea Air Space Exposition: John F. Kennedy (CVN 79) Enterprise (CVN 80) & Unnamed (CVN 81) – Two Ship Buy" (PDF). navsea.navy.mil. Naval Sea Systems Command. Archived (PDF) from the original on May 20, 2023. Retrieved October 1, 2021.
5. Shelbourne, Mallory (15 March 2024). "Aircraft Carrier Enterprise Delivery Delayed by 18 Months, Says Navy". usni.org. U.S. Naval Institute.
6. Mitchell, Becca (10 April 2018). "Newport News Shipbuilding says inactivation of former USS Enterprise is complete". WTKR. Archived from the original on 2 August 2023. Retrieved 19 September 2018.
7. "Aircraft Carriers - CVN". Fact File. United States Navy. 17 September 2020. Retrieved 18 November 2020.
8. "Navy To Name Next Ford Class Carrier Enterprise". 26 July 2012. Archived from the original on 3 December 2012. Retrieved 1 December 2012.
9. "News Release - Navy's Next Ford-Class Aircraft Carrier to be Named Enterprise". U.S. Navy. 1 December 2012. Archived from the original on 13 December 2012. Retrieved 1 December 2012.
10. "HII gets additional $228m for Enterprise (CVN 80) long lead time materials". Naval Today. 28 December 2018. Archived from the original on 28 December 2018. Retrieved 26 March 2019.
11. "Enterprise, Navy's First Nuclear-Powered Aircraft Carrier, Inactivated". U.S. Navy. 1 December 2012. Archived from the original on 2 December 2012. Retrieved 10 December 2015.
12. "Olympians Katie Ledecky, Simone Biles chosen as USS Enterprise sponsors". 13 News Now. 21 December 2016. Archived from the original on 5 March 2017. Retrieved 17 August 2017.
13. "HII Lays Keel of Future USS Enterprise (CVN 80) Aircraft Carrier". Naval News. 28 August 2022. Archived from the original on 28 August 2022.
14. Mitchell, Becca (21 August 2017). "First cut of steel kicks off construction of the aircraft carrier Enterprise at Newport News Shipbuilding". WKTR. Archived from the original on 22 August 2017.
15. "Huntington Ingalls Industries celebrates ceremonial steel-cut for aircraft carrier Enterprise (cvn 80) at newport news shipbuilding". Huntington Ingalls Industries. 24 August 2017. Archived from the original on 26 September 2022. Retrieved 24 August 2017.
16. Crews, Joanna (11 April 2018). "HII shipbuilding division inactivates Navy's USS Enterprise; Chris Miner comments". Executive Biz. Archived from the original on 21 October 2023.
17. Corillo, Todd (3 February 2017). "World's first nuclear powered aircraft carrier officially decommissioned". WKTR. Archived from the original on 3 February 2017. Retrieved 3 February 2017.
18. Katz, Justin (27 August 2022). "Ninth of its name: HII, Navy lays the keel for next Enterprise". Breaking Defense. Archived from the original on 27 August 2022. Retrieved 29 August 2022.
19. Lessig, High (11 August 2014). "The long goodbye: World's first nuclear aircraft carrier going dark". Daily Press. Archived from the original on 2 October 2022. Retrieved 8 July 2022.
20. Ronald O'Rourke (26 July 2012). "Navy Ford (CVN-78) Class Aircraft Carrier Program: Background and Issues for Congress" (PDF). Congressional Research Service. Archived (PDF) from the original on 19 December 2023. Retrieved 1 December 2012.
21. Shelbourne, Mallory (15 March 2024). "Aircraft Carrier Enterprise Delivery Delayed by 18 Months, Says Navy". USNI News. Retrieved 31 July 2024.

External links

• DoD press release naming CVN-80 Enterprise Archived 11 July 2017 at the Wayback Machine

Preceded by CVN-65	USS Enterprise 2025-	Succeeded by (Current)