Ford-Class Aircraft Carrier: Congress Should Consider Revising Cost Cap Legislation to Include All Construction Costs

Ford-class aircraft carriers will feature new technologies designed to reduce life-cycle costs. The lead ship, CVN 78, has been under construction since 2008, and early construction on CVN 79 is underway. In 2007 Congress established a cap for procurement costs which has been adjusted over time. In September 2013, GAO reported on a 2.3 billion increase in CVN 78 construction costs. GAO was mandated to examine risks in the CVN 78 program since its September 2013 report. This report assesses 1 the extent to which CVN 78 will be delivered within revised cost and schedule goals 2 if CVN 78 will demonstrate its required capabilities before ship deployment and 3 the steps the Navy is taking to achieve CVN 79 cost goals. To perform this work, GAO analyzed Navy and contractor data, and scheduling best practices.