NEWPORT NEWS, Va. — The Navy plans to commit up to $24 billion to buy two new Ford-class aircraft carriers under the same contract: CVN-80, to be named USS Enterprise and the as-yet unnamed CVN-81.
By doing it two-at-a-time, it's now estimated that taxpayers could save $4 billion.
That's a 5 to 10 percent savings over buying each carrier separately.
"I love it," said Rep. Rob Wittman (R-Va., 1st District). "That's great. Look at what it saved. We estimated at least $2.5 billion. You see right now it's going to save about $4 billion."
Wittman, who served as chairman of the House Seapower and Projection Forces Subcommittee, said he's "thrilled about the decision," which, will allow the Navy to build to a fleet of 12 aircraft carriers and 355 ships by 2034.
"I mean, this is a win-win for the nation," he said. "It's a win-win for our Navy. It's a win-win for our region. So, I'm really happy that we were able to finally get this through, and get this dual-buy of aircraft carriers. It worked in the past and I feel confident it will work even better in the future."
The Navy informed lawmakers of its intent to pursue the block purchase of two Ford-class aircraft carriers on New Year's Eve. Congress first has to review the plan over 30 days before the Navy can award the contract. USNI News reported the move that could pave the way for the Navy to award the contract to Newport News Shipbuilding by the end of January.