The Navy awarded a $724.4-million contract to...

The Navy awarded a $724.4-million contract to the Newport News Shipbuilding & Drydock Co. to begin building two nuclear-powered aircraft carriers. The award had been expected since late last fall, when Congress agreed to amend the fiscal 1988 budget to purchase two carriers at once in a cost-saving move. Newport News Shipbuilding of Newport News, Va., is a division of Tenneco Inc. and the only shipyard capable of building the huge Nimitz-class nuclear carriers. The contract covers “long lead time material and effort” to get construction started.