A look at where the Navy’s 11 aircraft carriers are now
WASHINGTON — The Navy is considering what to do about it the aircraft carrier USS Dwight D. Eisenhower, which has been fighting attacks by Houthi rebels on shipping in the Red Sea for almost nine months. The question is how to replicate the carrier’s combat power when the ship returns home.
The service has eleven nuclear-powered aircraft carriers. Generally, they are getting ready to deploy, are deployed or are no longer active and have gone in for maintenance and repairs.
The airlines have a lifespan of about 50 years and undergo a major overhaul of their nuclear and other systems halfway through, which could take several years.
Here’s a look at where the Navy’s aircraft carriers are now:
USS Dwight D. Eisenhower – Based in Norfolk, Virginia, and in the Red Sea, it left Norfolk on October 14, 2023. Has been extended twice.
USS George Washington — Located off the coast of Chile, it will sail from Norfolk to San Diego and then to Japan, where it will be deployed to replace the USS Ronald Reagan.
USS Theodore Roosevelt – Based in San Diego, it has been deployed to the Indo-Pacific Command since January and is located in the South China Sea.
USS Ronald Reagan — It was the airline deployed in Japan. It is on patrol in the Philippine Sea and is heading to San Diego.
USS Harry S Truman — It is stationed off the coast of Norfolk during preparatory work. It’s about halfway through deployment training and doing work-ups with the strike group. It is expected to be deployed in October/November.
USS Carl Vinson — It is located in the Port of San Diego and is in preparation for deployment. It will participate in the major, multinational military exercise known as the Rim of the Pacific (RIMPAC) in July and deploy to Pacific Command later this year.
USS Abraham Lincoln – Based in San Diego, it has just completed its final composite training exercises and will deploy to Pacific Command in July.
USS George H. W. Bush — Maintenance was carried out last December.
USS Gerald R. Ford — It has just returned from deployment and has entered the maintenance phase, which should last about a year.
USS John C. Stennis – In May 2021, the Stennis underwent a so-called RCOH – the major overhaul of the tank complex – which can take four years. It is expected to return to service in 2025. RCOH occurs approximately halfway through a carrier’s service life, and during that time the ship’s electronics, combat and propulsion systems are upgraded, replaced and tested.
USS Nimitz — It entered maintenance in October 2023 and will move to reprocessing later this year.
PCU John F. Kennedy — It will be delivered to the Navy next year.