Full ship shock trials held to make US warships battle-ready

Context

The US Navy carried out a ‘full ship shock trial’ on the USS Gerald R Ford, its newest and most advanced nuclear-powered aircraft carrier.

• It was carried to confirm that warships can continue to meet demanding mission requirements under harsh conditions.

About the Full Ship Shock Trial (FSST)

• The US Navy’s aircraft carrier USS Gerald R Ford (CVN 78) has completed the first scheduled explosive event in the Atlantic Ocean.
• The US Navy uses live explosives to confirm the design of new ships and test their ability to withstand and perform in battle-like conditions.
• The FSST probes whether the components survive shock in their environment on the ship; it probes the possibilities of system failures and large components that could not be otherwise tested.
• Such trials are usually conducted on ships that are the first of a new class to be built.
• “The first-in-class aircraft carrier was designed using advanced computer modeling methods, testing, and analysis to ensure the ship is hardened to withstand battle conditions.

Need of the trials

• During World War II, American warships suffered severe damage from enemy mines and torpedoes that had actually missed their target but exploded underwater nearby.
• The US Navy has since worked to improve the shockproofing of their ship systems to minimize damage from such “near miss” explosions.
• In FSSTs, an underwater explosive charge is set off near an operational ship, and system and component failures are documented.