The construction of the nuclear-powered, Ford-Class aircraft carrier, Gerald R. Ford, the 38th president of the US, began. The first ship of the class, numbered CVN 78, is expected to be delivered in 2015, at the cost of $8.7 billion. The new carrier will have a “smaller crew than previous flattops and incorporate new technologies, including an Electro-Magnetic Aircraft Launching System, advanced arresting gear and dual-band radar.”1 Northrop Grumman is the prime contractor of the ship.

• 1. “Keel Laid for Newest U.S. Navy Aircraft Carrier”, Defense News, November 13, 2009, http://www.defensenews.com/story.php?i=4376279&c=SEA&s=TOP; Peter Frost, “Shipyard lays keel of carrier in solemn tribute to Gerald R. Ford”, Press TV, November, 14, 2009, http://www.dailypress.com/news/dp-local_ford-keel-laying_1115nov15,0,684...