NEW YORK, March 25. /TASS/. The US Navy's most expensive ship, the American aircraft carrier USS Gerald R. Ford, which previously had to leave the Middle East due to a fire on board, apparently has a slew of other problems, Bloomberg reported, citing an assessment by the Pentagon's testing office.
According to the testing office, the problems with the $13.2 billion carrier range from potentially serious to the most mundane. Experts currently lack test data to assess the carrier's "operational suitability." There are also concerns about the reliability of several key systems, including the aircraft takeoff and landing system, the ability to continue operating when under enemy fire, and the operation of the elevators used to move weapons and ammunition from the hold to the deck.
"The Pentagon’s test office said "insufficient data are available at this time" — nine years after the ship was delivered — "to determine the Ford-class’s operational effectiveness," due to lack of testing in real combat. That means it’s not clear how well the Ford — and other ships in its class, which have yet to be delivered — can detect, track or intercept enemy aircraft, anti-ship missiles or small attack aircraft," Bloomberg reports.
On March 12, the US Naval Forces Central Command reported a fire on the US aircraft carrier USS Gerald R. Ford, which was in the Red Sea and participating in operations against Iran in the Middle East. Later, a spokesperson for Iran’s primary military command, Khatam al-Anbiya Central Headquarters, claimed that US military personnel had started the fire on the carrier to avoid further combat operations against Iran.
Delivered years late in May 2017, the Ford is the most expensive American warship ever built, at $13.2 billion.