The $13 billion carrier with a plumbing problem is home. Now come the costly repairs

Aircraft carrier USS Gerald R. Ford arrives at Naval Station Norfolk on May 16 in Norfolk, Va. The USS Gerald R. Ford returned home to Virginia after an 11-month deployment, the longest since the Vietnam War. Mike Kropf/Getty Images hide caption

With 4,600 sailors finally home, USS Gerald R. Ford will finally receive some much needed repairs and an upgrade to its beleaguered sewage system.

The country's newest aircraft carrier undertook an eight-month maiden voyage in January 2024, swiftly followed by a nearly 11-month deployment. That is longer than any carrier had been away from since the Vietnam War. It is expected to go into maintenance at Norfolk Naval Shipyard in Norfolk, Va.

Crews will repair the damage caused by a fire that started in the laundry room in March and spread to the area where sailors sleep. At the same time, workers will also upgrade the ship's sewage system, said Rear Adm. Kavon Hakimzadeh, who oversees the shipyard.

NPR has reported on numerous breakdowns that plagued the ship during the early months of its recent record-breaking long deployment. Originally contacted by a parent of a sailor on board the Ford about the sewage system issues, NPR later reviewed emails from a Freedom of Information Act request that showed how the hull technicians on the ship were struggling to keep it running.

The emails between departments covered March to August 2025. The carrier left Norfolk on June 24, 2025, for a deployment that would go from Europe, to the Caribbean for the operation around Venezuela and then to Operation Epic Fury, which targeted Iran.

But the plumbing problem isn't just a question of a plunger and some elbow grease. The system, used on cruise ships, uses smaller pipes and vacuum suction to flush the toilets.

Known as the Vacuum Collection, Holding, and Transfer (VCHT) it's unique to the new Ford-class aircraft carriers.