What is your general opinion of the Gerald R. Ford class?
Short answerIt has strong ideas but attempted many advances at once, and greater weapons-handling automation might have made its crew goals more practical.
NotesThe Gerald R. Ford-class design contains many strong ideas, though attempting numerous advances together increased the work needed to mature the ship. The class also pursued ambitious crew reductions, making reliable automation central to the design. The Queen Elizabeth class's automated weapons-handling system offers a useful contrast. A comparable solution might have made Ford's low crew targets more practical while preserving internal space for operations. The concern is integration risk, while the value of the carrier's individual technologies remains clear.