Navy wants Mattis to delay shock testing for $12.9 billion super carrier

This is not at all surprising. The Ford is basically a Nimitz class with newer systems, so it's not so much the hull as these new systems. What is surprising is that there does not seem to have been sufficient modeling done to know how these systems will fare during shock testing.

I have to wonder what Optevfor, NavSea and SpaWar have been doing here. None of this should have been put on the ship without proper testing first. It's like deploying the Elmo with an untested Rail Gun, and no other guns. It's just frakken stupid.

I'm probably a little biased having spent my at-sea time on an Austin class LPD with so many patches, Jerry-rigs and coats of paint that a thick slick of mineral spirits might have done us in.

#flattopproblems

Shock trials are only don eon the 1st of class. Not all ships go through them. If the hull form isn't substantially different, then there is no need...