WASHINGTON, May 9 (Xinhua) -- A serious mechanical failure has stopped U.S. super carrier Gerald R. Ford mid-voyage earlier this year and forced its return to port for maintenance, according to a Navy memo.
The incident took place in January, when the ship's propulsion system bearing experienced an overheat. The U.S. Navy and the ship's manufacturer have yet to fix the glitch, which delays commissioning of the ship by half a year, Bloomberg News reported Tuesday.
According to the memo dated March 8, the propulsion bearing overheated "92 degrees Fahrenheit above the bearing temperature setpoint" and "after securing the equipment to prevent damage, the ship safely returned to port."
This is the second time in one year that the propulsion system has shown defect, with the first in April 2017, before delivery.
Shelby Oakley, a U.S. Government Accountability Office official, said the failure may be attributed to the lack of oversight the Navy exercised before the ship's delivery. "Unfortunately, this and other ship quality issues are not surprising," she said.
The U.S.S. Gerald R. Ford was built by Huntington Ingalls. The company is reportedly evaluating a case to claim against the manufacturer of the propulsion unit, General Electrics.
A GE spokeswoman confirmed that the company has made the part for the ship.
The aircraft carrier, the most expensive in history, is undergoing a "shake down" period to test the systems and work out bugs. The Navy said the mechanical issues will be "fully corrected" but they expect a half year's delay in terms of deployment scheduling.
