Petters: ‘Exciting time' for shipbuilders

Congress and the Defense Department are in the middle of a two-year spending spree, and Huntington Ingalls Industries’ (HII) leadership is positioning itself to grab as many construct awards as possible before the funding window closes – likely FY 2020. The FY 2019 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) gained Senate approval this week ahead of HII’s quarterly earnings call July 2 by President/CEO Mike Petters. HII reported revenues of $2B. The increase was due to work at the company’s Newport News (Va.) Shipbuilding facility that builds carriers and parts of the Virginia-class submarines, he said. “This is the most exciting time I’ve seen in shipbuilding in 30 years,” Petters told USNI News. HII has “an offer in to the Navy” to build two aircraft carriers, 10 submarines, and is in a competition for a share of 10 destroyers. The Navy is evaluating bids for a new guided-missile frigate, with a contract award anticipated in 2020, Petters said. HII’s Ingalls Shipbuilding in Pascagoula, Miss., submitted a bid for the FFG-X work. Also, Congress and DoD are considering a multi-year plan for buying more San Antonio-class amphibious warships (LPDs). (Source: USNI News 08/02/18)