U.S. carriers still supreme
The USS Enterprise (CVN 65) just turned 50 years old. The super carrier was the first nuclear-powered carrier. Today she has four squadrons of fighter- attack aircraft with electronic warfare and airborne early warning aircraft and is one of the 11 nuclear-powered carriers of the Nimitz class in the U.S. fleet. Her replacement, the USS Gerald R. Ford, a new class of aircraft carrier, will not be in service until 2015. The “Big E” is a 93,000 ton ship and actually the longest carrier in the fleet – actually her 1,123 ft mkae her the longest warship in the world.
America’s newest carrier is the USS George H. W. Bush (CVN 77). The USS Bush carries two million pounds of ordnance in the form of bombs, missiles, torpedoes, and air defense Gatling gun ammo. Bush stretches 1,092 feet and displaces over 100,000 tons, making her one of the world’s largest warships (though she is slightly shorter than USS Enterprise).
The carrier’s mission is to conduct safe flight operations in support of national objectives.
The nation’s aircraft carriers remain at the center of the most powerful, sea-going fighting force the world has ever seen. Together with their accompanying strike groups, the carriers provide the right balance of forward presence and surge capability to conduct warfighting missions or peacetime operations anywhere in the world.
The new Ford class of carrier along with the 11 Nimitz carriers will project dominate maritime combat power well into the future.