US Navy/MCS Seaman Riley McDowell Delays, cost overruns, and technological glitches on the USS Gerald R. Ford grew so frustrating that the Navy and lawmakers clashed publicly over the ship in late 2019. Now the ship, which is the first new carrier design in four decades, is making rapid progress, and the Navy says the once struggling warship may ready for action sooner than expected. At a House hearing a little more than a year ago, Rep. Elaine Luria criticized the Navy's newest, most expensive aircraft carrier to date, calling it a "nuclear powered floating barge that's not deployable." Those comments started a verbal sparring match with then-Navy Secretary Richard V. Spencer over the USS Gerald R. Ford, which had been a thorn in the Navy's side after years of delays, cost overruns, and technological glitches.