Nimitz class aircraft carrier

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USS Nimitz, lead ship of her class of supercarrier
USS Nimitz
Class overview
Name: Nimitz class aircraft carrier
Builders: Newport News Shipbuilding Company
Operators:  United States Navy
Preceded by: Kitty Hawk class aircraft carrier
Enterprise class aircraft carrier
Succeeded by: Gerald R. Ford class aircraft carrier
In commission: May 3, 1975
Completed: 10/10
Active: USS Nimitz
USS Dwight D. Eisenhower
USS Carl Vinson
USS Theodore Roosevelt
USS Abraham Lincoln
USS George Washington
USS John C. Stennis
USS Harry S. Truman
USS Ronald Reagan
USS George H. W. Bush
General characteristics
Displacement: 78,280 tons light
101,196 tons full load
Length: 1,040 ft (317 m) waterline
1,115 ft (340 m) overall
Beam: 134 ft (41 m) waterline
257 ft (78 m) extreme
Draft: 40 feet (12 m)
Propulsion:

2 × Westinghouse A4W nuclear reactors
4 × steam turbines

4 × shafts
260,000 shp
Speed: 30+ knots (56+ km/h)
Range: Effectively unlimited
Complement: 3,200 ships company
2,500 air wing
Armament:
Aircraft carried: 85

The Nimitz-class supercarriers, a line of nuclear-powered aircraft carriers in service with the United States Navy, are the largest capital ships in the world, and are considered to be a hallmark in the superpower status of the United States of America. These aircraft carriers are numbered with consecutive hull numbers starting with CVN-68. The letters CVN denote the type of ship: "CV" is the hull classification symbol for aircraft carriers, and "N" indicates nuclear-powered propulsion. The number after the CVN means that this is the 68th "CV", or large aircraft carrier.

Nimitz (CVN-68), the lead ship of the class, was commissioned on May 3, 1975. George H. W. Bush (CVN-77), the tenth and last of the class, was built by the Newport News Shipbuilding Company, and entered naval service on January 10, 2009. The George H.W. Bush is the first transition ship to the new Gerald R. Ford class, the first ship of which began construction in 2007 and will incorporate new technologies including a new multi-function radar system, volume search radars, an open architecture information network, and a significantly reduced crew requirement. To lower costs, some new technologies were also incorporated into the Ronald Reagan, the previous carrier to the George H.W. Bush.

Because of construction differences between the first three ships (Nimitz, Dwight D. Eisenhower, and Carl Vinson) and the latter seven (from Theodore Roosevelt on), the latter ships are sometimes erroneously called Theodore Roosevelt-class aircraft carriers, though the U.S. Navy considers them all to be in one class.[1] As the older Nimitz carriers come in for Refueling and Complex Overhaul (RCOH), they are upgraded to the standards of the latest ships.[2] The Nimitz was the first ship of the class to undergo her initial refueling, during a 33-month RCOH at the Newport News Shipbuilding Company in Newport News, Virginia, in 1998. The Dwight D. Eisenhower was next, completing its RCOH in 2005. The Carl Vinson began its RCOH in late 2005. The USS Abraham Lincoln entered the large drydock at Puget Sound Naval Shipyard on September 8, 2006, but left ahead of schedule on December 18.[2]

By tonnage, the Nimitz-class warships are the largest aircraft carriers built so far, holding the world record for displacement of any naval war vessel. The ten ships of the class total just under a million tons in combined displacement.

Contents

[edit] General characteristics

Official USN sideview linedrawing

[edit] Ships in class

The United States Navy lists the following ships in the Nimitz class:[1]


[edit] USS Nimitz (CVN-68)

Near Victoria, BC


[edit] USS Dwight D. Eisenhower (CVN-69)

With George Washington behind



[edit] USS Carl Vinson (CVN-70)

Returning from Operation Enduring Freedom



[edit] USS Theodore Roosevelt (CVN-71)

USS Theodore Roosevelt (CVN-71)



[edit] USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN-72)

In the Gulf of Alaska



[edit] USS George Washington (CVN 73)

In the Mediterranean


[edit] USS John C. Stennis (CVN 74)

Heading home to Bremerton, WA


[edit] USS Harry S. Truman (CVN 75)

USS Harry S. Truman alongside oiler USNS John Lenthall (T-AO-189)


[edit] USS Ronald Reagan (CVN 76)

The USS Ronald Reagan



[edit] USS George H. W. Bush (CVN 77)

The USS George H. W. Bush is underway from Naval Station Norfolk.

[edit] See also

United States Navy portal

[edit] References

  1. ^ a b "Aircraft Carriers - CV, CVN". Fact File. United States Navy. October 12, 2007. http://www.navy.mil/navydata/fact_display.asp?cid=4200&tid=200&ct=4. Retrieved on 2009-01-10. 
  2. ^ a b "Refueling and Complex Overhaul". Northrop Grunman Corporation. no date. http://www.nn.northropgrumman.com/capabilities/rco.html. Retrieved on 2008-04-19. 


v • d • e
Nimitz-class aircraft carrier
Nimitz subclass
Theodore Roosevelt subclass
Ronald Reagan subclass

Preceded by: Enterprise class - Followed by: Gerald R. Ford class
List of aircraft carriers of the United States Navy
v • d • e

Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nimitz_class_aircraft_carrier"
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