NEWPORT NEWS SHIPBUILDING TO HOST KEEL-LAYING CEREMONY FOR AIRCRAFT CARRIER JOHN F. KENNEDY (CVN 79)

NEWPORT NEWS, Va., Aug. 18, 2015 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) —

What:	Media are invited to attend a keel-laying celebration for the aircraft carrier John F. Kennedy (CVN 79)
	at HII’s Newport News Shipbuilding division. The ceremony is not open to the public.

Who:	Caroline Kennedy, the ship’s sponsor and daughter of the ship’s namesake, the 35^th President of the
	United States, will participate via video. She will be introduced by her cousin, Rep. Joseph Kennedy,
	D-Mass. Other ceremony participants include Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe; Rep. Randy Forbes, R-Va.;
	Rep. Bobby Scott, D-Va.; Rear Adm. Thomas Moore; Vice Adm. William Hilarides; Assistant Secretary
	of the Navy Sean Stackley; Rear Adm. Earl Yates, the first commanding officer of the retired aircraft
	carrier USS John F. Kennedy (CV 67); and Newport News Shipbuilding President Matt Mulherin.

When:	Media Preview Event
	11 a.m. Friday
	Media check-in: 10:30 a.m.

	Keel-Laying Ceremony
	10 a.m. Saturday
	Media check-in: 9:30 a.m.

Where:	On Friday, media will park in Newport News’ North Yard parking lot (directions below).

	On Saturday, signs will direct media to park outside the 60^th Street gate in the parking lot east of the
	Welding School. Media will be transported by bus to and from the event, which will be held
	alongside Dry Dock 12.

RSVP:	Confirmation of attendance is required. Please RSVP by noon Thursday.
	You must present a photo ID and be a U.S. citizen to be admitted to the event. Please RSVP to:

	Christie Miller, Huntington Ingalls Industries
	(757) 380-3581
	[email protected]

Please note that because this is an industrial setting, long pants, shirts with sleeves covering shoulders, and flat, sturdy, closed-toe shoes are required attire.

A webcast of the event will be provided at http://thefordclass.com/. A live, multi-camera satellite broadcast of the event also will be provided. Satellite information is as follows:

Satellite: Galaxy 17 13k (91 degrees west)
Transponder: Ku Digital 13 lower (18 Mhz)
Downlink Frequency: 11951.0 Mhz
Downlink Polarity: Horizontal
FEC: 3/4
Symbol Rate: 14.385617 Mbps
DVBS, QPSK TRANSMISSION, 4:2:0, 1080i

Window time: 9:30-noon Eastern Saturday

Directions to Media Parking:

From I-64 (either westbound or eastbound)
Take Exit #264 to Interstate I-664 toward Downtown Newport News/Suffolk
Take Exit #5 (35^th Street) to Warwick Boulevard
Travel approximately 3 miles on Warwick Boulevard
Immediately after 69^th Street, make a U-turn on to Huntington Avenue
Merge into the right lane and continue to bear right on to Shipyard Drive
Continue downhill and follow signs to media parking

Follow @HIIndustries on Twitter for live updates, and join the conversation on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram using #JFKCVN79. Visit http://thefordclass.com/ for event updates, background information and a biography of the ship’s sponsor.

About Huntington Ingalls Industires

Huntington Ingalls Industries is America’s largest military shipbuilding company and a provider of engineering, manufacturing and management services to the nuclear energy, oil and gas markets. For more than a century, HII’s Newport News and Ingalls shipbuilding divisions in Virginia and Mississippi have built more ships in more ship classes than any other U.S. naval shipbuilder. Headquartered in Newport News, Virginia, HII employs approximately 38,000 people operating both domestically and internationally. For more information, visit: