 And Newport News Shipbuilding is hoping to grow its 26,000-person workforce by as many as 3,000 this year to tackle its backlog of projects. NNS, a division of Huntington Ingalls Industries and Virginia's largest industrial employer, is building modular components for 12 Columbia-class subs. Plus, they're continuing to overhaul Nimitz-class aircraft carriers, and they're building a Ford-class aircraft carrier expected to be delivered in September 2029.