Northrop Seeks U.S. Aid in Hurricane Recovery

Northrop Grumman Corp. said its Gulf Coast shipyard operations might take as long as five years to recover from Hurricane Katrina without U.S. aid.

The company’s Gulf Coast shipyards would be back at full capacity in a year with government help, said Philip Teal, president of Northrop’s ship systems business, during a news conference in Washington.

Katrina caused $850 million in damage to Northrop’s Louisiana and Mississippi operations. Without aid, Century City-based Northrop would have to divert funds intended for repairing facilities, which employed 16,800 people, to cover damage to its ships, he said.