NEWPORT NEWS, Va. (AP) — The nation’s largest military shipbuilder says it plans to hire 3,000 workers in Virginia this year.

Huntington Ingalls Industries says that number includes 250 engineers and designers. Spokeswoman Christie Miller said its facility in Newport News is also recruiting IT professionals, welders and shipfitters.

The yard builds and overhauls nuclear aircraft carriers. Large portions of submarines are also built there.

The Daily Press in Newport News reports (http://bit.ly/2lQuzM2) that profits are soaring at the company overall, driven in large part by its Gulf Coast shipyard. The facility in Mississippi builds destroyers and amphibious warships for the Navy as well as large Coast Guard cutters.

The yard in Virginia currently employs about 20,000 people. It is the state’s largest industrial employer.