NEWPORT NEWS, Va. — The U.S. Navy has awarded a $5.099 billion contract (with options reaching $5.183 billion) to Huntington Ingalls Industries’ Newport News Shipbuilding (NNS) division to execute the Refueling and Complex Overhaul (RCOH) of the Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS Harry S. Truman (CVN 75). The contract execution follows a $913 million advanced planning award issued in January 2024, transitioning CVN 75 into its mid-life recapitalization phase to prepare the warship for its remaining 25 years of operational service.
Scheduled for completion in November 2031, the RCOH represents approximately one-third of the total maintenance and modernization an aircraft carrier receives over its 50-year service life. Work conducted at Newport News Shipbuilding will encompass the refueling of both onboard nuclear reactors, comprehensive overhauls of thousands of compartments and tanks, structural repairs, and major technological upgrades across the carrier’s propulsion plant, electrical distribution architecture, combat direction systems, and tactical air navigation hardware. USS Harry S. Truman becomes the eighth Nimitz-class carrier to undergo RCOH at NNS.
TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS: USS HARRY S. TRUMAN (CVN 75) REFUELING & COMPLEX OVERHAUL (RCOH)
* System Classification: Nimitz-Class Nuclear-Powered Aircraft Carrier (CVN) Mid-Life Recapsitalization
* Prime Contractor & Shipbuilder: HII Newport News Shipbuilding (Newport News, Virginia)
* Contracting Authority: U.S. Navy Program Executive Office (PEO) Aircraft Carriers / Portfolio Acquisition Executive (PAE) Maritime
* Contract Structure & Valuation:
* Execution Contract Base Value: $5,099,973,132
* Cumulative Contract Value (with Options): $5,183,380,744
* Pre-Execution Advance Planning Value: ~$913 Million (awarded January 2024)
* Execution Window: September 2026 through November 2031 completion target
* Primary Overhaul & Refueling Scope:
* Nuclear Refueling: Complete defueling and core refueling of 2x Westinghouse A4W pressurized water reactors
* Structural & Internal Compartments: Modernization, repainting, and structural preservation across thousands of compartments, tanks, and structural spaces
* Propulsion & Power Generation: Total overhaul of steam turbines, reduction gears, main condensers, electrical distribution switchboards, and shafting
* Combat & Avionics Upgrades: Integration of upgraded SSDS, SPQ-9B / AESA search radars, tactical data links, C4ISR suites, and full F-35C Lightning II integration modifications
* Platform Baseline Parameters (CVN 75):
* Dimensions: Overall Length: 332.8 m (1,092 ft) | Flight Deck Width: 76.8 m (252 ft)
* Full Load Displacement: ~100,000 long tons
* Powerplant & Propulsion: 2x Westinghouse A4W nuclear reactors / 4x steam turbines driving 4x shafts (260,000 shp)
* Speed & Operational Range: >30 knots; unlimited range over 25-year reactor core cycle
* Embarked Carrier Air Wing (CVW): 75+ tactical aircraft (F/A-18E/F Block III, EA-18G, E-2D, F-35C, MH-60R/S)
