Gerald R. Ford-class aircraft carrier

So you're clearly an advocate of what's going on with naval aviation and, uh, carrier strike group and all that.

I know the Gerald R. Ford recently, you know, came back, and they have the emails, I believe, and the AAG on that.

Like, is there any myth-busting or things you wanna talk to regarding takeaways from those systems or your perspective?

So to your point, I am an advocate and I'm an observer, and I think we all see the same data.

I mean, people know how, we've been testing things for decades, and yes, we make mistakes every once in a while, but yeah, I can only imagine that someone accounted for some of the challenges that-

Let me repeat something that Yank Cummings said when he was on this podcast, and he's a former commanding officer of the Ford.

By the way, my favorite joke in the United States Navy perhaps, is Yank Cummings, a Southie from Boston, saying that, "In the Navy's infinite wisdom, they put me in command of a ship with three Is in the name, Gerald R. Ford." That's about my best Yank Cummings impression.

I can't do it any better than that.

And in today's episode, the US Navy is having to rethink its plan for a new line of aircraft carriers.

The Ford-class of nuclear-powered ships are meant to replace the Navy's current Nimitz-class supercarriers.

The lead vessel, the USS Gerald R. Ford, is already in service, and the follow-on USS John F. Kennedy is in the final stages of construction and certification.

The Ford design features 23 new or significantly upgraded technologies, including electromagnetic-powered aircraft catapults, weapon system elevators, and arresting gear that replaced the legacy steam and hydraulic systems on the Nimitz-class ships.

Six Ford-class carriers are currently planned, although eventually all 10 Nimitz-class carriers are expected to be replaced.

But a recent presidential order from U.S.

Commander in Chief Donald Trump could see significant design changes to future Ford class vessels.

Specifically, it rolls back the use of electromagnetic catapults known as EMALs and the use of electrically driven elevator lifts that transport weapons from deep within the