The Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS George H.W. Bush (CVN 77), transits to Naval Station Norfolk after on-time completion of an 11-month maintenance period at Norfolk Naval Shipyard and sea trials, Nov. 16, 2024. (Samuel Wagner/U.S. Navy)
East Coast aircraft carrier USS George H.W. Bush has rejoined the Navy fleet on time following a 10-month stint in a shipyard for scheduled maintenance.
The Bush left Norfolk Naval Shipyard in Portsmouth, Va., on Saturday, sailing upriver to its homeport of Naval Station Norfolk, Va. The Bush entered the shipyard Jan. 11 for a post-deployment maintenance cycle following its 2022-23 deployment.
“On-time completion of our [planned incremental availability], and subsequent sea trials, is a product of both the Avenger’s rock-solid teamwork with Norfolk Naval Shipyard and the tireless dedication of our sailors,” said Capt. Robert Bibeau, commanding officer of the Bush. “Through full ownership of the work package, complete integrity every step of the way with our successes and challenges, and forward-leaning deck plate leadership on both the ship and at the shipyard, we were able to get the ship back in action and return lethality to the fleet.”
The Bush’s on-time delivery comes as the sea service strives to overcome a history of maintenance delays, which can have a domino effect on shipyards’ tight schedules.
From 2015 to 2019, 38 out of 51 — or 75% — of planned maintenance periods at the Navy’s four public shipyards were completed late for aircraft carriers, according to a 2020 report released by watchdog Government Accountability Office.
The GAO made three recommendations to the Navy, including updating workforce planning requirements to avoid the consistent use of overtime; completing the development of shipyard performance metrics; and developing and implementing goals, action plans and milestones, and monitoring results. All recommendations were completed, the Navy said. A follow-on review has not been released.
The last two aircraft carriers to enter the Virginia-based Navy shipyard — including the Bush — have rejoined the fleet on time. The USS Harry Truman departed the shipyard on time Dec. 17, 2023, less than one month before the Bush’s arrival. But the USS Dwight D. Eisenhower was delivered two months late in 2022, extending a 13-month maintenance period to 15 months.
The Bush had extensive advance work done pier side at Naval Station Norfolk before the ship entered the shipyard. This style of maintenance, dubbed the “window of opportunity” maintenance period, was a modification to the traditional flow of the schedule.
Modeled after “Tiger Teams,” where mechanics travel overseas to accomplish work on ships to prevent a pause in fleet operations, was successful at keeping the Bush’s maintenance cycle on track, the shipyard said.
“We were successful through our Tiger Team mentality that was established while working at Naval Station Norfolk,” Kenny Minnard, Nuclear Assistant Project Superintendent said. “Everyone worked together knowing that resources were limited in comparison to shipyard proper [located across the Elizabeth River in Portsmouth].
The Bush’s maintenance period at Norfolk Naval Shipyard focused on modernization efforts, structural repair and preservation work. Sensor and system upgrades were installed, and multiple areas were cleaned and painted, to include tanks, voids, weapons elevators, areas of the flight deck and hangar bay, the main mast and exterior of the ship, as well as general repairs to the hull, and mechanical and electrical infrastructure.
Additionally, there were many quality of service improvements made during modernization with the goal of improving life for the sailors. The Bush saw upgrades to crew living spaces, combination ovens in the ship’s galley, modular refrigeration equipment, Wi-Fi capability and a computer network upgrade were installed.
“The Avenger and [Norfolk Naval Shipyard] team applied the true spirit of ‘Get Real, Get Better’ by embracing the red and owning, communicating, and aggressively attacking challenges on a daily basis to ensure that we got back out to sea more capable, more adaptable, and more lethal than ever before,” Bibeau said.
