Final Preparations Begin for USS Abraham Lincoln RCOH

The Navy announced yesterday that USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN 72) is moving to Drydock 11 at Huntington Ingalls’ Newport News Shipbuilding (HII-NNS) to begin the final stages of preparation for her Refueling and Complex Overhaul (RCOH).

The Navy funded the transit using previously awarded advance planning funding, which was provided to HII in February. The Navy expects to award the RCOH contract in the near future.

During an RCOH, the ship is recapitalized for the second-half of its nominal 50-year service life. This includes refueling the reactors, repairing and upgrading ship infrastructure and systems, and modernizing the ship and her combat and communication systems.

Capt. Frank Simei, program manager for In-Service Aircraft Carriers said:

“USS Abraham Lincoln will benefit from the experience gained by the Navy and the shipyard from four previous RCOHs. Refueling, repairing, and modernizing a Nimitz-class carrier gives the Navy a fully mission ready aircraft carrier ready for two and a half more decades of service on the front line.”

Initial funds being used at award are from an Above Threshold Reprogramming (ATR) approved by Congress in September 2012. These funds are sufficient to support unrestricted work. Additional funds are appropriated by the FY13 Defense Appropriations Bill.

Award of the RCOH contract had been delayed six weeks due to the delay in passage of the FY13 Defense Appropriations Bill. To mitigate impact of the delay, the current CVN 72 RCOH Advance Planning Contract was continued and additional effort was authorized using a portion of the FY12 ATR funds. This allowed RCOH preparations to continue pierside at Naval Station Norfolk, minimizing impact to the CVN 72 RCOH.

The RCOH is scheduled to complete in November 2016.

CVN 72 is the fifth Nimitz-class aircraft carrier to undergo an RCOH. She is planned to be the first aircraft carrier to receive the Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) modifications during RCOH. This will enable the ship to operate the new F-35C Lightning II JSF when she returns to the fleet, scheduled for fiscal year 2017.

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Press Release, March 28, 2013