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Outbyte Driver Updater FREEScan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minuteDriver Scan →Outbyte PC Repair FREEClear out junk files and repair common Windows errorsFree Scan →A U.S. Navy carrier’s midlife refueling overhaul—called a Refueling and Complex Overhaul, or RCOH—is a years-long shipyard project, not a routine refueling stop. The Navy refuels the reactors while the ship undergoes major repairs and modernization across propulsion, electronic, combat-support and other ship systems. The crew and shipyard then install equipment, test the ship in stages and conduct sea trials before it returns to the fleet.
What an RCOH is—and why it takes years
An RCOH combines reactor refueling with extensive repair and modernization so a carrier can serve the latter part of its planned life. Propulsion is central, but the work is not limited to the reactors: the Navy describes upgrades to propulsion equipment, infrastructure and electronic systems, along with work on broader ship and combat-support capabilities.
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The project is undertaken by the ship’s crew, Newport News Shipbuilding and other contractors. It involves intrusive work that requires the carrier to be in the shipyard, including a period in dry dock, followed by outfitting and testing. The precise work package and sequence vary by ship; published accounts of individual carriers are examples, not a fixed checklist for every RCOH.
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How the overhaul proceeds
1. Plan, inspect and prepare
Planning and preparation begin well before the main shipyard work. For USS John C. Stennis, the Navy described a preparatory period called “Smart Start,” alongside inspections, long-lead procurement and facility preparation. That ship’s preparations included setting up temporary services and systems, removing decking and catapult equipment, and sampling paint, lagging and tile. Its Shipboard Consolidated Offload and Outfitting Plan (SCOOP) removed equipment, tools and other items not built into the ship for storage.
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These details show the kinds of work preparation can involve; they should not be read as a universal RCOH checklist. The Navy has also described dedicated facilities for organizing overhaul work: in June 2026, it reported the opening of a Carrier Refueling Overhaul Workcenter near the RCOH dry dock, with approximately 80,000 square feet of dedicated space.
2. Move into the shipyard and complete the heavy work
The carrier transits to the shipyard and enters dry dock for work that cannot be carried out during ordinary operations. Reactor refueling takes place as part of this phase, alongside repairs and upgrades to the propulsion plant and work throughout the ship. Public Navy accounts describe the purpose and broad scope, but do not provide a procedural account of reactor defueling, fuel handling, radiological controls or detailed nuclear-plant work instructions. Those technical steps should not be inferred from the general description of an RCOH.
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3. Leave dry dock for outfitting
Dry-dock work is not the finish line. In July 2024, the Navy reported that Stennis had undocked in April and would move to an outfitting berth for further installation and testing of major components and combat-support systems. This transition lets the project continue with equipment installation and ship-wide work after the dry-dock period.
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Testing checks the propulsion plant and other systems as the overhaul progresses toward return to service. The Navy’s Stennis account lists shore steaming, cold and hot operations, and power-range tests, followed by total-ship testing, fast cruise and sea trials. Fast cruise is named as a milestone in that ship’s account; the public description does not establish detailed criteria or a universal sequence for every carrier.
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Sea trials provide an at-sea opportunity to exercise the ship after the shipyard work. In its May 2023 account of USS George Washington’s RCOH completion, Naval Sea Systems Command said trials tested the full range of operating systems and included high-speed maneuvering evolutions intended to stress new technology and equipment. That is a published example, not proof that every ship’s trials use identical events.
What published carrier examples show about schedules
These dated reports illustrate how an RCOH can span multiple years. Forecasts and status updates below belong to the report dates shown; they are not confirmation of later completion.
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| Carrier | Published milestone | What the report establishes |
|---|---|---|
| USS John C. Stennis (CVN 74) | Navy reports from May 2021 and July 2024 | Stennis transited to Newport News for RCOH in May 2021. In July 2024, the Navy said the ship was more than 65 percent complete and tracking for redelivery in October 2026; that was a target reported at the time, not a verified October 2026 outcome. |
| USS George Washington (CVN 73) | Naval Sea Systems Command report, May 2023 | The Navy reported RCOH completion and described sea trials that tested operating systems and included high-speed maneuvering. |
| USS Harry S. Truman (CVN 75) | Navy contract announcement, September 2026 | The Navy announced a $5.1 billion fixed-ceiling incentive contract for Truman’s RCOH and scheduled completion for November 2031. The ship was delivered in 1998. The completion date is a forecast in the announcement, not a confirmed result. |
How much work is involved?
RCOH requires substantial effort from both shipyard workers and the ship’s crew. A May 2020 Navy report said USS George Washington’s ship’s force had completed more than 1.3 million work-hours out of 2,306,996 planned work-hours for that carrier’s specific RCOH. Those figures describe that ship’s work package; they are not a standard labor estimate for all carriers.
The numbers and milestones help convey the scale, but they do not make every overhaul directly comparable. Each ship’s scope and schedule are specific to its project, and a reported target should not be mistaken for an actual redelivery date.
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