Akagi-class supercarrier

The Nimitz-class supercarriers are a class of ten nuclear-powered aircraft carriers in service with the United States Navy. The lead ship of the class is named for World War II United States Pacific Fleet commander Fleet Admiral Chester W. Nimitz, the U.S. Navy's last fleet admiral. With an overall length of 1,092 ft (333 m) and full-load displacements of over 100,000 long tons,[1] they have been the largest warships built and in service,[4] although they are being eclipsed by the upcoming Gerald R. Ford-class aircraft carriers. Instead of the gas turbines or diesel-electric systems used for propulsion on many modern warships, the carriers use two A4W pressurized water reactors which drive four propeller shafts and can produce a maximum speed of over 30 knots (56 km/h) and maximum power of around 260,000 shp (190 MW). As a result of the use of nuclear power, the ships are capable of operating for over 20 years without refueling and are predicted to have a service life of over 50 years. They are categorized as nuclear-powered aircraft carriers and are numbered with consecutive hull numbers between CVN-68 and CVN-77.[Note 1]

All ten carriers were constructed by Newport News Shipbuilding Company in Virginia. USS Nimitz, the lead ship of the class, was commissioned on 3 May 1975, and USS George H.W. Bush, the tenth and last of the class, was commissioned on 10 January 2009. Since the 1970s, Nimitz-class carriers have participated in many conflicts and operations across the world, including Operation Eagle Claw in Iran, the Gulf War, and more recently in Iraq and Afghanistan.

The angled flight decks of the carriers use a CATOBAR arrangement to operate aircraft, with steam catapults and arrestor wires for launch and recovery. As well as speeding up flight deck operations, this allows for a much wider variety of aircraft than with the STOVL arrangement used on smaller carriers. An embarked carrier air wing consisting of up to around 90 aircraft is normally deployed on board.[citation needed] After the retirement of the F-14 Tomcat, the air wings' strike fighters are primarily F/A-18E and F/A-18F Super Hornets and F/A-18A+ and F/A-18C Hornets. In addition to their aircraft, the vessels carry short-range defensive weaponry for anti-aircraft warfare and missile defense.

Flight decks and aircraft facilities
The carriers have two flight decks, one on the starboard portion of the upper deck and a second interior flight deck with an opening in the bow. Both flight decks are capable of launching and retrieving craft. General fleet battle procedure utilises the upper deck for launching of attack craft while the lower deck is used for craft recovery, though in standard operations only the upper deck is used.

The upper flight deck is 5,000 metres long and allows craft to be launched and recovered simultaneously along its length. 16 electromagnetic launch systems are used to boost craft to attack speeds and allow craft to enter the combat area without expending valuable fuel. Craft may also be launched without such a "rolling start", which similar to terrestrial aircraft takeoffs. In this case, the fighters are usually deployed all at once in an overwhelming formation.

Craft awaiting launch are guided to launch stations and secured to the deck through magnetic clamps. Magnetic clamps are also used for craft retrieval. The lower flight deck is 2,500 metres long and is also equipped with 6 electromagnetic launch systems. Twenty large elevators transport aircraft between the upper flight deck, the hangars decks and the lower flight deck. The hangars are divided into 18 bays.