Maintenance cost for aging nuclear carrier rises

Posted to: Military Newport News
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The Associated Press
© April 30, 2009

NEWPORT NEWS

The cost of maintaining the world's first nuclear aircraft carrier has gone up again.

The USS Enterprise is undergoing a 16-month dry-dock maintenance at Northrop Grumman Corp.'s shipyard in Newport News. The Navy said Wednesday that a contract modification for "emergent and supplemental" work will increase the project's cost by $6 million.

It's the third contract modification for the maintenance project, which initially was to cost $453.3 million. The price tag is now $480.9 million.

Commissioned in 1961, the Enterprise is on schedule to be re-delivered to the Navy in September. The project will extend the carrier's life until at least 2013.

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Chump Change

Submitted by dennisp on Thu, 04/30/2009 at 10:43 pm.

You kiddin' me? Just 6 million measely bucks? Man, where ya'll been? Obama probably keeps that kinda floose in his pocket just for walking around money.
If not, he can just order the Treasury to borrow it from the ChiComs or print a little extra tomorrow when they crank up the printing press. (Naaaah, your grandkids won't mind.)
Won't even have to ask the clueless weasels in Congress - they gave him the Carte Blanche card months ago and no longer remember or even care that the Constitution requires THEM to control the purse strings.

"steadfast Commander in Chief during troubled times"

Submitted by keithb64840 on Thu, 04/30/2009 at 5:20 pm.

The Prez who sat there reading his little kiddy book while our country was under attack and several thousand Americans were being murdered on 9-11.

That's what republicans now call "steadfast".

Can anyone imagine Reagan doing that?

final hurrah for historic vessel

Submitted by ricke69229 on Thu, 04/30/2009 at 12:25 pm.

No doubt this is it for the storied Enterprise CVN-65. I thought it died when it's famed and unique super structure was changed years ago. Now it looks like a stripped down and skinny Nimitz class ship.

Now it's time to start building the CVN-W (for Dub'ya as in George W) named after a great steadfast Commander in Chief during troubled times.