VIDEOKINGS — The Navy has fired thousands of pounds of explosives at one of its aircraft carriers, creating a blast equivalent to a 3.9 magnitude earthquake, to test its wartime abilities.

USS Gerald R. Ford, the first of a new class of carrier, was struck by the blast about 100 miles off the coast of Florida around 4pm Friday.

The explosive event was the first in a series of full-ship shock trials to prove whether the carrier can take a hit during battle at sea and marked the first shock trial in more than three decades on a Navy carrier.

The Navy celebrated the success of the trial Saturday, tweeting that ‘the leadership and crew demonstrated #NavyReadiness fighting through the shock, proving our warship can ‘take a hit’ and continue our mission on the cutting edge of #NavalAviation!’

Watch on YouTube: Navy fires thousands of pounds of explosives at USS Gerald R. Ford, creating a 3.9 mt earthquake.