May 12, 2026
NEWPORT NEWS, Va., May 11, 2026 — HII (NYSE: HII) hosted Rep. Adam Smith, D-Wash., ranking member of the House Armed Services Committee, at its Newport News Shipbuilding division Monday to meet with shipyard leadership and tour the company’s facilities.
“We’re grateful for the time Rep. Smith invested with us to see our commitment to the mission and being held accountable for supporting it,” NNS President Kari Wilkinson said. “We understand the urgent need for submarines and aircraft carriers and are steadfast in our commitment to the nation.”
During Monday’s tour, Smith saw construction progress on Columbia- and Virginia¬-class submarines, as well as on Gerald R. Ford¬-class aircraft carriers. He also witnessed how NNS is innovating with advanced technology solutions to increase efficiencies across the shipyard.
"Revitalizing our defense industrial base — particularly in the area of shipbuilding — remains a top priority with strong bipartisan support in the committee,” Smith said. “Addressing capacity issues and workforce shortages amid the ongoing pacing challenge from China and threats from Russia, Iran, North Korea, and other global extremists is more important than ever. After seeing the work being done by the people at Newport News Shipbuilding, I'm confident that we can meet these threats and challenges as long as we remain committed to providing support for and oversight of the stable, long-term funding needed to invest in infrastructure and personnel. That is how we can achieve greater innovation with the kind of advanced technology needed to build a stronger national defense."
With a workforce of more than 26,000 shipbuilders, NNS is the largest industrial employer in Virginia.
HII is a global, all-domain defense provider. HII's mission is to deliver the world's most powerful ships and all-domain solutions in service of the nation, creating the advantage for our customers to protect peace and freedom around the world.
As the nation's largest military shipbuilder, and with a more than 135-year history of advancing U.S. national security, HII delivers critical capabilities extending from ships to unmanned systems, cyber, ISR, AI/ML and synthetic training. Headquartered in Virginia, HII's workforce is 44,000 strong.
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