US awards $17.6M contract for Gerald Ford aircraft carrier repairs

The Pentagon has awarded a $17.5 million contract to General Dynamics for work to repair damage sustained by the US' most advanced aircraft carrier, which authorities said was damaged by a laundry fire in the war against Iran.

The $17,572,357 contract entails "emergent maintenance" work in Norfolk, Virginia, home of the Norfolk Naval Shipyard, and is expected to be completed by March 2027, the Pentagon said Wednesday.

The fire aboard the USS Gerald R. Ford was reported in March. The US Navy said at the time that the blaze had been "contained," that two sailors suffered "non-life-threatening injuries" and that the carrier was "fully operational."

CNN reported earlier this month that new footage from the ship depicted damage far more severe than initially reported. Sources told the outlet that the ship’s fire-suppression system failed to activate.

The fire broke out aboard the ship while it was operating in the Middle East as part of the US-Israeli war against Iran, which began Feb. 28.

Military officials said it took more than 30 hours to extinguish the blaze and the damage left over 600 service members without beds, according to a report by the New York Times.

Dozens of service members were reported to have suffered smoke inhalation, in addition to two who were treated for "non-life-threatening injuries."

The crew members who lost their beds were reported to be bunking on floors and tables, and since the fire originated in the main laundry area, sailors had no access to wash their clothes.

The carrier, along with its 4,500 sailors and fighter pilots, was ordered from the Mediterranean to the Caribbean on Oct. 24 by Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth. It was part of a US military buildup intended to increase pressure on Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro before his capture in early January.

The vessel subsequently departed for the Middle East for the US-Israeli war against Iran.

The US military’s Central Command said in March that the fire caused "no damage to the ship’s propulsion plant, and the aircraft carrier remains fully operational," but crew members reported that the plumbing system of 650 toilets on board frequently breaks down.