Rep. Courtney Visits Newport News Shipbuilding
Huntington Ingalls Industries (HII) hosted Rep. Joe Courtney (D-Conn.) Tueaday, for a tour of the company’s Newport News Shipbuilding division.
The congressman saw first-hand the progress being made on Virginia-class submarines, which Newport News builds in partnership with General Dynamics Electric Boat, located in Courtney’s district. He also learned about progress being made on the aircraft carriers Gerald R. Ford (CVN 78) and John F. Kennedy (CVN 79) and met with Newport News leadership to discuss capital investments being made in the shipyard to reduce construction costs and improve efficiencies across all of Newport News’ construction programs.
“I want to thank Matt Mulherin and his team for hosting me at Newport News Shipbuilding,” Courtney said. “I last visited the yard when the Ford aircraft carrier was in the early stages of construction, and it was impressive to see this ship now nearly complete. With work underway on the Kennedy, I can see how the lessons learned are being applied toward reducing costs, improving efficiency and ensuring that they are meeting the needs of our Navy. I also always appreciate the chance to see the work that this yard does with Electric Boat to produce the most capable submarines in the world. As ranking member of the Seapower subcommittee, I know the valuable role that yards like Newport News and the dedicated men and women who work there play in our nation’s security.”
Courtney is a senior member of the House Armed Services Committee and serves on the Seapower and Projection Forces and the Readiness subcommittees. He co-chairs the Congressional Shipbuilding Caucus with Rep. Rob Wittman, R-Va., and played an instrumental role in securing funding for the Virginia-class submarine program’s two-submarines-per-year build plan and design and engineering work on the replacement for Ohio-class submarines.
“It’s always a pleasure to host our friends in Congress who do so much to support our efforts,” said Newport News’ President Matt Mulherin. “We’ve made significant progress across all of our programs since Congressman Courtney’s last visit in 2012, and it’s important that he has the opportunity to see it first-hand because his work on Capitol Hill plays an integral role in our success.”