Carrier John F. Kennedy Leaves Newport News for Acceptance Trials, 7 Weapons Elevators Delivered
The second Ford-class aircraft carrier — John F. Kennedy (CVN-79) — left Wednesday afternoon for acceptance trials after years of delays and Navy and congressionally mandated equipment changes to the ship. “John F. Kennedy departed our Newport News Shipbuilding division to begin acceptance sea trials. These trials will test and evaluate important ship systems and components at sea,” reads a Wednesday social media statement from HII. “This milestone is thanks to the dedication and commitment of our incredible shipbuilders, suppliers, ship’s force crew and U.S. Navy teammates. We wish them a safe and successful time at sea.” The departure from
The future John F. Kennedy (CVN-79) leaves Newport News Shipbuilding on Aug. 12, 2026. HII photo The second Ford-class aircraft carrier — John F. Kennedy (CVN-79) — left Wednesday afternoon for acceptance trials after years of delays and Navy and congressionally mandated equipment changes to the ship.
“John F. Kennedy departed our Newport News Shipbuilding division to begin acceptance sea trials. These trials will test and evaluate important ship systems and components at sea,” reads a Wednesday social media statement from HII. “This milestone is thanks to the dedication and commitment of our incredible shipbuilders, suppliers, ship’s force crew and U.S. Navy teammates. We wish them a safe and successful time at sea.”
The departure from Newport News, Va., is the second underway for John F. Kennedy following January builder’s trials in which HII tested the ship’s systems ahead of Navy trials, USNI News reported at the time.
According to budget documents, two systems held up the delivery of JFK in 2025 — testing on the Advanced Arresting Gear that catch aircraft as they land on the carrier and the Advanced Weapons Elevators that shuttle munitions from ammo storage deep in the ship to the aircraft on the flight deck.
USNI News understands the Navy recently notified Congress that seven of the 11 advanced weapons elevators have completed construction. The number of elevators delivered will allow the crew to access all of the weapons magazines and continue training and certification, according to the notification.
While the technology for the AWEs is widely used commercially, they have to be installed on the carrier to meet exacting tolerances to transport ammunition, USNI News has previously reported.
JFK’s departure on sea trials follows years of churn on delivery of the carrier, which the Navy and Congress made changes to the equipment installed on the carrier. Congress required JFK to be capable of fielding the F-35C Lightning II Joint Strike Fighter on its first deployment. JFK was also backfitted with the Enterprise Air Surveillance Radar, which was a requirement.
The shift made in 2020 added an additional two years of work to the carrier’s detail design and construction contract, according to the Fiscal Year 2024 Navy budget documents.
The carrier is scheduled to deliver to the service in March, according to budget documents.
Newport News Shipbuilding president Kari Wilkinson told USNI News that JFK was slated for preliminary acceptance from the service in 2026.
