The US Naval Institute website reported on July 7 that due to the delivery delay of the “John F. Kennedy” aircraft carrier, the number of active US Navy aircraft carriers will be reduced to about 10 within the next year or so.
According to a screenshot from the report by the US Naval Institute website, the delivery of the second ship in the Ford class, the “Kennedy” aircraft carrier, is set to be delayed for two years. According to the latest budget document disclosed by the US Navy for the fiscal year 2026, the “Kennedy” aircraft carrier is scheduled to be delivered in March 2027, whereas according to last year’s budget proposal, this aircraft carrier was originally supposed to be delivered this month.
The latest budget proposal for the US Navy’s construction for the fiscal year 2026 states: “The delivery date of the ‘Kennedy’ aircraft carrier has been postponed from July 2025 to March 2027 to support the certification work for the advanced arresting gear and continue with the installation of the advanced weapon elevator.”
The report mentioned that the “Nimitz” aircraft carrier, which has been in service for 50 years, is planned to retire in May next year, meaning that in the nearly one-year period before the “Kennedy” aircraft carrier’s delivery, the number of active US Navy aircraft carriers will decrease from 11 to 10.
Furthermore, the report noted that the “Kennedy” aircraft carrier has encountered multiple delays during its construction process. As early as 2023, its delivery date was postponed from June 2024 to June 2025. The latest budget proposal also shows that the delivery of the third ship in the Ford class, the “Enterprise” aircraft carrier, is also facing a one-year delay, with plans to be delivered in July 2030.