Summary and Key Points: National security analyst Stephen Silver evaluates the operational status of the USS Gerald R. Ford (CVN 78) following a March 12, 2026, laundry room fire in the Red Sea.
-Currently supporting Operation Epic Fury near Saudi Arabia, the carrier is on track for a historic 11-month deployment, nearing the 332-day record set by the USS Midway during the Vietnam War.
The Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Winston S. Churchill (DDG 81) sails alongside the world’s largest aircraft carrier the USS Gerald R. Ford (CVN 78), Sep. 24, 2025. Winston S. Churchill, as part of Carrier Strike Group 12, is on a scheduled deployment in the U.S. 6th Fleet area of operation to support the warfighting effectiveness, lethality and readiness of U.S. Naval Forces, Europe-Africa, and defend U.S. Allied and partner interest in the region. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist Seaman Hector Rodriguez)
The first-in-class aircraft carrier USS Gerald R. Ford (CVN 78) transits the Atlantic Ocean, March 19, 2023. Ford is underway in the Atlantic Ocean executing its Composite Training Unit Exercise (COMPTUEX), an intense, multi-week exercise designed to fully integrate a carrier strike group as a cohesive, multi-mission fighting force and to test their ability to carry out sustained combat operations from the sea. As the first-in-class ship of Ford-class aircraft carriers, CVN 78 represents a generational leap in the U.S. Navy’s capacity to project power on a global scale. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Jackson Adkins)
ATLANTIC OCEAN (Oct. 29, 2019) USS Gerald R. Ford (CVN 78) conducts high-speed turns in the Atlantic Ocean. Ford is at sea conducting sea trials following the in port portion of its 15 month post-shakedown availability. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Connor Loessin)
-Despite its $13 billion cost and EMALS technology, the ship faces persistent VCHT sewage system failures and internal maintenance crises.
-Silver argues that while the carrier remains “fully mission capable,” the compounding technical setbacks and extended combat duration highlight a critical readiness gap.
Record-Breaking Mission: Why the USS Gerald R. Ford Remains at Sea Amid Iran Conflict
Per USNI News, the USS Gerald R. Ford suffered an on-board fire last week, injuring two sailors.
“On March 12, USS Gerald R. Ford (CVN 78) experienced a fire that originated in the ship’s main laundry spaces. The cause of the fire was not combat-related and is contained,” the US Central Command and 5th Fleet said in a social media message on Thursday. “There is no damage to the ship’s propulsion plant, and the aircraft carrier remains fully operational.”
“Two Sailors are currently receiving medical treatment for non-life-threatening injuries and are in stable condition. Additional information will be provided when available,” the message continued. “The Gerald R. Ford Carrier Strike Group is currently operating in the Red Sea in support of Operation Epic Fury.”
According to a ship spotter quoted by USNI News, the USS Gerald R. Ford was operating in the Northern part of the Red Sea, near Saudi Arabia, at that time.
The ship, per that report and others, has been deployed for an uncommonly long time, and is about a month away from matching the post-Vietnam era record for the longest-ever carrier deployment. If it stays out until May, it will overtake the record set during the Vietnam War.
Aviation Boatswain’s Mate (Aircraft Handling) 1st Class Jose Mejiacastro, assigned to Air Department aboard the world’s largest aircraft carrier, USS Gerald R. Ford (CVN 78), prepares to signal to a Carrier Air Wing 8 F/A-18E Super Hornet attached to Strike Fighter Squadron 87 on the flight deck, Sept. 26, 2025. Gerald R. Ford, a first-in-class aircraft carrier and deployed flagship of Carrier Strike Group Twelve, is on a scheduled deployment in the U.S. 6th Fleet area of operations to support the warfighting effectiveness, lethality and readiness of U.S. Naval Forces Europe-Africa, and defend U.S., Allied and partner interests in the region. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Mariano Lopez)
The aircraft carrier USS Gerald R. Ford (CVN 78) completes the first scheduled explosive event of Full Ship Shock Trials while underway in the Atlantic Ocean, June 18, 2021. The U.S. Navy conducts shock trials of new ship designs using live explosives to confirm that our warships can continue to meet demanding mission requirements under harsh conditions they might encounter in battle. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Riley B. McDowell)
The aircraft carrier USS Gerald R. Ford (CVN 78) successfully completes the third and final scheduled explosive event of Full Ship Shock Trials while underway in the Atlantic Ocean, Aug. 8, 2021. The U.S. Navy conducts shock trials of new ship designs using live explosives to confirm that our warships can continue to meet demanding mission requirements under harsh conditions they might encounter in battle. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Novalee Manzella)
This follows a series of reports earlier this year, when the carrier was still in the Caribbean, of problems with the toilets on board.
“Every day that the entire crew is present on the ship, a trouble call has been made for ship’s force personnel to repair or unclog a portion of the VCHT system, since June 2023,” said an undated documentary, obtained by NPR through a FOIA request earlier this year.
“Our sewage system is being mistreated and destroyed by Sailors on a daily basis. My HT’s are currently working 19 hours a day right now trying to keep up with the demand,” a 2025 email said.
The USS Gerald Ford has suffered occasional setbacks throughout its history- including when it was being built.
History of the Ford
The USS Gerald Ford was laid down in 2009 and christened in 2013. It took four years after that until it was commissioned in the summer of 2017, during the first year of Donald Trump’s first presidency. It didn’t leave for its first combat deployment until 2023.
Why did it take so long?
NPR laid out some of that history late last year.
“Ford-class carriers possess 23 technological advancements for aircraft carriers, according to the Navy, including a new electromagnetic system for launching aircraft that replaces steam-powered catapults. The Ford-class ships are also expected to be able to operate with a crew 20% smaller than that of a Nimitz-class carrier.
“But the military struggled to implement some of that new technology on the Ford, resulting in construction delays,” the NPR story said. “The Navy says the tab for building the Ford, the most advanced U.S. aircraft carrier in existence, topped $13 billion.”
In November 2013, testifying before the Senate Armed Services Committee, Jonathan Greenert, who was then the Navy’s Chief of Naval Operations, spoke of the impact of “sequestration” on the national defense. During the Obama Administration, sequestration was part of a compromise between the White House and Congress that brought about spending cuts, as a result of the Budget Control Act of 2011.
One effect, as laid out in that testimony, was to “delay delivery of USS Gerald R. Ford (CVN-78) by two years, extending the period of 10 CVN in service, and lowering surge capacity.”
In 2018, Navy Times reported that the Gerald Ford was “forced back into port.” The reason why? “Another propulsion train problem.”
“The ship experienced a propulsion system issue associated with a recent design change, requiring a return to homeport for adjustments before resuming at sea testing,” Colleen O’Rourke, spokeswoman for Naval Sea Systems Command in Washington, said at the time.
“Ford has been tasked with conducting critical test and evaluation operations that identify construction and design issues,” O’Rourke said in the 2018 story. “As a continuation of that testing and evaluation process, Ford got underway to conduct an independent steaming event that would allow the ship and its crew to continue testing its systems and procedures.”
Then, in 2019, USNI News wrote about further delays in the carrier, this time citing testimony by Navy officials before the House Armed Services Committee panel.
The problem was the need for “more time needed to repair Ford’s nuclear propulsion system and Advanced Weapons Elevators,” Navy acquisition chief James Geurts told the House panel.
“All three of those causal factors – making the adjustments to the nuclear power plant that we noted during sea trials, fitting in all of the post-shakedown availability workload, and finishing up the elevators – they’re all trending about the same time,” Geurts told the committee in 2019. “So, October right now is our best estimate. The fleet has been notified of that. They’re working that into their train-up cycle afterward.”
An F/A-18F Super Hornet, attached to the “Blacklions” of Strike Fighter Squadron (VFA) 213 and a F/A-18E Super Hornet, attached to the “Golden Warriors” of Strike Fighter Squadron (VFA) 87 fly over the world’s largest aircraft carrier, USS Gerald R. Ford (CVN 78), the Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Mahan (DDG 72), April 11, 2025. The Gerald R. Ford Carrier Strike Group is underway in the Atlantic Ocean completing integrated naval warfighting training. Composite Training Unit Exercise (COMPTUEX) is the Joint Force’s most complex integrated training event and prepares naval task forces for sustained high-end Joint and combined combat. Integrated naval training provides America’s civilian leaders and commanders highly-capable forces that deter adversaries, underpin American security and economic prosperity, and reassure Allies and partners. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Maxwell Orlosky
The world’s largest aircraft carrier USS Gerald R. Ford (CVN 78) steams in the Adriatic Sea, June 23, 2023. Gerald R. Ford is the U.S. Navy’s newest and most advanced aircraft carrier, representing a generational leap in the U.S. Navy’s capacity to project power on a global scale. The Gerald R. Ford Carrier Strike Group is on a scheduled deployment in the U.S. Naval Forces Europe area of operations, employed by U.S. Sixth Fleet to defend U.S., allied, and partner interests. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Jackson Adkins)
Rep. Rob Wittman (R-VA), a member of the panel, had heard such concerns on a visit to Huntington Ingalls Industries’ Newport News Shipbuilding yard, where the repairs were being conducted at the time.
“As I talked to the shipyard workers there, they have concerns about the time frames regarding the post-shakedown availability,” the Congressman said during the hearing, per the USNI report at the time.
In December 2022, the Navy announced that the USS Gerald Ford had returned to Norfolk, “after successfully completing its inaugural deployment throughout the Atlantic while conducting exercises and port visits with Allies and partners.” The carrier had departed Norfolk in early October of that year.
“During the scheduled deployment, Ford operated with eight Allies and partners, Canada, Denmark, Spain, France, Germany, the Netherlands, Finland, and Sweden, to strengthen interoperability, while conducting a range of maritime operations and exercises, the announcement said.
“This deployment brought together an incredible group of Allies and partners with one single focus—to contribute to a peaceful, stable, and conflict-free Atlantic region through our combined naval power,” Vice Adm. Dan Dwyer, commander, U.S. 2nd Fleet and Joint Force Command Norfolk, said in the Navy’s announcement. “Opportunities to interoperate and integrate make our nations, our navies and the NATO Alliance stronger.”
About the Author: Stephen Silver
Stephen Silver is an award-winning journalist, essayist, and film critic, and contributor to the Philadelphia Inquirer, the Jewish Telegraphic Agency, Broad Street Review, and Splice Today. The co-founder of the Philadelphia Film Critics Circle, Stephen lives in suburban Philadelphia with his wife and two sons. For over a decade, Stephen has authored thousands of articles that focus on politics, national security, technology, and the economy. Follow him on X (formerly Twitter) at @StephenSilver, and subscribe to his Substack newsletter.