.jpg) USSNimitz (CVN-68) off the coast ofSan Diego in July 2009. | |
| History | |
|---|---|
 United States | |
| Name | Nimitz |
| Namesake | Chester W. Nimitz |
| Ordered | 31 March 1967 |
| Builder | Newport News Shipbuilding |
| Laid down | 22 June 1968 |
| Launched | 13 May 1972 |
| Acquired | 11 April 1975 |
| Commissioned | 3 May 1975 |
| Reclassified | CVN-68, 30 June 1975 |
| Homeport | Naval Base Kitsap |
| Identification |
|
| Motto | Teamwork, a Tradition |
| Nickname(s) |
|
| Status | in active service |
| Badge |  |
| General characteristics | |
| Class and type | Nimitz-classaircraft carrier |
| Displacement | 100,020 long tons (112,020 short tons)[1][2] |
| Length | |
| Beam |
|
| Draft |
|
| Propulsion |
|
| Speed | 31.5knots (58.3 km/h; 36.2 mph)[5] |
| Range | Unlimited distance; 20–25 years |
| Complement |
|
| Sensors and processing systems |
|
| Electronic warfare & decoys |
|
| Armament |
|
| Armor | Unknown |
| Aircraft carried | 90 fixed wing and helicopters |
USSNimitz (CVN-68) is anaircraft carrier of theUnited States Navy, and thelead ship ofher class. One of the largestwarships in the world, she was laid down, launched, and commissioned asCVAN-68, "aircraft carrier, attack,nuclear powered", but she was laterredesignated asCVN-68, "aircraft carrier,multi-mission, nuclear-powered", on 30 June 1975, as part of afleet-wide realignment that year.
The ship was named afterWorld War II Pacific fleet commanderChester W. Nimitz, USN, (1885–1966), who was the Navy's thirdfleet admiral. It is the only Nimitz-class carrier whose official name is just the surname of the person its named for.Nimitz had her homeport atNaval Station Norfolk until 1987, when she was relocated toNaval Station Bremerton inWashington (now part ofNaval Base Kitsap). Following herRefueling and Complex Overhaul in 2001, her home port was changed toNaval Air Station North Island inSan Diego County, California. The home port ofNimitz was again moved toNaval Station Everett in Washington in 2012.
In January 2015,Nimitz changed home port from Everett back toNaval Base Kitsap.[6] With the inactivation ofUSS Enterprise in 2012 and decommissioning in 2017,Nimitz is now the oldest U.S. aircraft carrier in service, and the oldest serving aircraft carrier in the world.
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Nimitz was authorized by theU.S. Congress infiscal year 1967 andNewport News Shipbuilding and Dry Dock Co. inNewport News, Virginia, was awarded the $106.5 million contract (equivalent to $1004.31 million today). Thekeel waslaid down on 22 June 1968. The vessel was christened on 13 May 1972, by Catherine Nimitz Lay, the daughter of the lateAdmiral Nimitz, six years after his death.Nimitz was delivered to the Navy in 1975, and wascommissioned atNaval Station Norfolk on 3 May 1975, by the 38th President of the United States,Gerald R. Ford.[7]
Nimitz is part ofCarrier Strike Group Eleven (CSG-11) withCarrier Air Wing Seventeen (CVW-17) embarked, withNimitz as theflagship of the strike group and the home of the commander of Destroyer Squadron 9.
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USSNimitz first deployed to theMediterranean Sea on 7 July 1976, withCarrier Air Wing 8 embarked in company with the nuclear-poweredcruisersUSS South Carolina andUSS California. In November 1976,Nimitz was awarded theBattle "E" fromCommander, Naval Air Force U.S. Atlantic Fleet, for being the most efficient and foremost aircraft carrier in the Atlantic Fleet. The cruise was uneventful, and the carrier returned toNorfolk, Virginia on 7 February 1977.
A second uneventful Mediterranean cruise was conducted from 1 December 1977, to 20 July 1978. The third deployment began on 10 September 1979, to the Mediterranean. The ship moved to the Indian Ocean in response to theIran hostage crisis in which the U.S. Embassy inTehran,Iran, was overtaken and 52 hostages were held. Prior to this trip, the ship took part in the shooting of the 1980 filmThe Final Countdown, whose story was specifically set aboard theNimitz. After four months on station,Operation Evening Light was launched fromNimitz's decks in an attempt to rescue the U.S. Embassy staff. The mission was aborted after a helicopter crashed at a refueling point in the Iranian desert. The ship returned home 26 May 1980, having spent 144 days at sea.
On 26 May 1981, aMarine CorpsEA-6B Prowler assigned toCarrier Air Wing 8 (CVW-8) crashed on the flight deck, killing 14 crewmen and injuring 45 others.[8] The Prowler was fuel-critical after a "bolter" (missed approach), and its crash and the subsequent fire and explosions destroyed or damaged nineteen other aircraft.[9][10] Autopsies showed later that the pilot had had six times the normal level of the stimulantbrompheniramine in his blood.[11]Despite having no connection to the accident, the media focused on the autopsy results of several members of theNimitz's enlisted flight deck crew who were killed, whotested positive formarijuana. In an article by Robert Reinhold in the 17 June 1981, edition ofThe New York Times, it was reported that "Experts at the National Institute on Drug Abuse say that it would probably be impossible to establish conclusively that any of the Nimitz crew had been smoking marijuana on the night of the crash because the test does not directly detect the component of marijuana smoke that acts on the brain. Because the metabolites may persist in the blood for many days, the test may detect marijuana that was used many days earlier long after the effects have worn off".[12] As a result, PresidentRonald Reagan instituted a"Zero Tolerance" drug policy across all of the U.S. armed services, which started the mandatory drug testing of all U.S. military personnel.[13]
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Nimitz deployed again to the Mediterranean on 3 August 1981. The ship, in company withUSS Forrestal, conducted aFreedom of Navigation exercise in international waters in theGulf of Sidra nearLibya on 18 and 19 August 1981. On the morning of 19 August 1981, twoGrumman F-14 Tomcats ofVF-41 were engaged by two LibyanSu-22s, resulting in the two Libyan aircraft being shot down in what became known as theGulf of Sidra incident.
Nimitz's fourth deployment, from 10 November 1982, to 20 May 1983, was to theCaribbean Sea and the Mediterranean Sea.Nimitz deployed for a fifth time on 8 March 1985. On 14 June 1985, two Lebanese gunmen hijackedTWA Flight 847, which carried 153 passengers and crew and included Americans. In response,Nimitz was deployed to the coast ofLebanon, where the ship remained until August 1985. The embarked Airwing 8 flew continuous sorties for 67 days, bombing several sites inBeirut including the runways ofBeirut Rafic Hariri International Airport. The ship returned to Norfolk on 4 October 1985.
Nimitz, again with CVW-8 embarked, departed Norfolk for the sixth and final Mediterranean deployment on 30 December 1986. After four months and numerous Mediterranean port visits, the carrier crossed the equator en route toRio de Janeiro. From Rio de Janeiro, she proceeded south aroundCape Horn and into thePacific Ocean. After a brief stop inSan Diego, to offload the East Coast air wing,Nimitz arrived at her new home port ofBremerton, Washington, on 2 July 1987.
Nimitz deployed to the Western Pacific withCarrier Air Wing 9 embarked on 2 September 1988. During the1988 Olympic Games inSeoul,Nimitz provided security off the coast ofSouth Korea, then in October, operated in theNorth Arabian Sea participating inOperation Earnest Will, the protection of reflaggedKuwaiti tankers. On 30 November 1988, while in the Arabian Sea, a 20 mm cannon accidentally fired during maintenance, striking aKA-6 Intruder. The ensuing fire spread to six other aircraft, and two sailors were killed.Nimitz returned to Bremerton on 2 March 1989.
On 25 February 1991,Nimitz departed Bremerton for thePersian Gulf in relief ofUSS Ranger in the aftermath ofOperation Desert Storm, returning to Bremerton on 24 August 1991.Nimitz again deployed to the Persian Gulf on 1 February 1993, in support ofOperation Southern Watch, returning on 1 August 1993.
On 27 November 1995,Nimitz deployed to the Western Pacific, Indian Ocean and Persian Gulf with Carrier Air Wing Nine (CVW-9). In March 1996, the ship patrolled the waters offTaiwan amidmissile tests conducted by the Chinese in the area, becoming the first American warship to pass through theTaiwan Strait since 1976.Nimitz also cruised the Persian Gulf in support of Southern Watch prior to returning from deployment on 20 May 1996.
Between 14 and 24 July 1997,Nimitz participated in Joint Task Force Exercise 97-2 (JTFEX 97–2) off the coast of southern California, which also served as a "Revolution in Strike Warfare" demonstration. The latter event was designed to demonstrate the capability of an aircraft carrier and an embarked air wing to project carrier-based airpower into littoral warfare.[7] On 20 July 1997,Nimitz and Carrier Air Wing Nine began a high-intensity strike campaign. When flight operations were completed four days later,Nimitz and Carrier Air Wing Nine had carried out 771 strike sorties while dropping 1,337 bombs on target. Carrier Air Wing Nine flew 975 fixed-wing sorties during this four-day surge operation. Almost 80 percent of the sorties flown were strike sorties, with strike support accounting for another 10 percent.F/A-18 Hornet strike fighters flew nearly 80 percent of the strike sorties. Of the 771 strike sorties, 727 were loaded with ordnance, while 44 were electronic support byEA-6B Prowlers. During this four-day period, only a portion of the medium-range interdiction strikes required tanking support.KC-135 andKC-130 tanker aircraft provided most of this support.S-3 Vikings conducted recovery tanking and supplied more than one-third of the fuel passed to Carrier Air Wing Nine aircraft during this surge operation.[14][15] This surge had been preceded by a 16-hour preparation after undergoing four days that had generated about 700 fixed-winged sorties.[15][16] A following study by theCenter for Naval Analyses determined thatNimitz and Carrier Air Wing Nine could have maintained this high-sortie operational tempo for another twelve to twenty-four hours before requiring equipment maintenance, rest for the crews while ordnance and aviation fuel stocks to be replenished.[17]
On 1 September 1997,Nimitz began an around the world cruise, again supporting Southern Watch, which ended inNewport News, Virginia on 2 March 1998. She next spent the next three years undergoing a nuclear Refueling and Complex Overhaul that ended on 25 June 2001.
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On 21 September 2001,[18] after sea trials in the Virginia Capes,Nimitz began to transit around South America to the new home port ofNAS North Island inSan Diego,California, arriving there on 13 November 2001. Aircraft fromCarrier Air Reserve Wing 20 were embarked for the transit. From January to May 2002, a four-month post-shakedown maintenance availability was completed at North Island; during this timeAdvanced Combat Direction System was installed.
Nimitz's eleventh operational deployment began on 3 March 2003.[19] The group relievedUSS Abraham Lincoln in the Persian Gulf in mid-April 2003, launchingCarrier Air Wing 11 aircraft sorties overIraq in support ofOperation Iraqi Freedom (OIF) andAfghanistan in support ofOperation Enduring Freedom (OEF). She returned to San Diego on 5 November 2003.Nimitz and CVW-11 were awarded the 2003 Battle "E"[20] andFlatley Award in early 2004.[21]
In November 2004,Nimitz was contacted byUSS Princeton, which was tracking reportedunidentified flying objects.Princeton subsequently contacted two Navy F/A-18F fighters fromNimitz whose cockpit instrumentation recorded data and imagery that some pilots interpreted asan object accelerating and maneuvering at extraordinary speeds. The incident was publicized in December 2017 along with details of theAdvanced Aviation Threat Identification Program.[22]
Nimitz, again with CVW-11 embarked, deployed to thePersian Gulf on 7 May 2005, returning on 8 November 2005.[23] This deployment marked three decades of service, and was depicted in theEmmy award-winning 2008PBS documentary seriesCarrier.[24] In June 2006,Nimitz was awarded the 2005 Battle "E".[25]
The carrier departed North Island for her thirteenth deployment on 2 April 2007, to the Arabian Sea, relievingUSS Dwight D. Eisenhower in support of OIF.[26] The carrier anchored offChennai, India on 2 July 2007, as part of efforts to expand bilateral defense cooperation between India and the United States.[27] Sailors participated in community work in Chennai prior to departing, on 5 July 2007, along with the destroyerUSS Pinckney towards the Persian Gulf, and then returned to North Island on 30 September 2007.[28]
On 24 January 2008,Nimitz deployed to the Pacific for a "surge"-deployment.[29] On 9 February 2008, two RussianTu-95 'Bear' bombers overflew the carrier in the Western Pacific.[30] Four F/A-18C Hornets were launched when the bombers were 500 miles (800 km) away from the US ships, and intercepted the bombers 50 miles (80 km) south ofNimitz. Two F/A-18s trailed one of the bombers, which twice flew over the deck of the carrier at an altitude of 2,000 feet (610 m), while the other two F/A-18s trailed another Tu-95 circling about 50 miles (80 km) away from the carrier. Reportedly, there was no radio communication between the American and Russian aircraft. According to theDepartment of Defense, one of the two aircraft was said to have flown aboveNimitz at an altitude of 2,000 feet (610 m). On the same day, Russian aircraft entered Japanese airspace, which caused the Japanese to raise protest to the Russian ambassador in Tokyo.[31]
Again, on 5 March 2008, a Russian bomber came within 3 to 5 nautical miles (6 to 9 km) and flew 2,000 feet (610 m) aboveNimitz, and the battle group. Two F/A-18 fighters intercepted the Russian aircraft and escorted it out of the area.[30]
Nimitz was awarded the Navy Battle "E" for battle efficiency for 2007 along with the Ney award for food service excellence, and returned to her home port of San Diego on 3 June 2008.
TheNimitz Strike Group, including CVW-11, departed the States for a scheduled Western Pacific deployment on 31 July 2009,[32] and began to fly combat missions in support of Operation Enduring Freedom 21 September.[33]
In January 2010, while in the Persian Gulf, the ship was awarded theMeritorious Unit Commendation for back-to-back deployments in support of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan in 2007 and 2008. The award was presented by AdmiralGary Roughead in a ceremony on the ship on 6 January 2010.[34]
Nimitz visitedHong Kong for five days in February 2010 to allow the crew to rest and visit the city. The visit occurred despite China previously preventing a visit by the carrierUSS Kitty Hawk.[35][36]
On 9 December 2010, the Navy formally announced thatEverett, Washington was to be the new home port forNimitz.[37] This move was expected to save the Navy $100 million.[38] On 9 March 2012,Nimitz arrived at her new homeport of Naval Station Everett after spending nearly a week at sea conducting post overhaul sea trials.[39]
In March 2012,Nimitz arrived at the new home port ofNaval Station Everett inWashington state after more than a year of maintenance work in Bremerton, replacing sister carrier,Abraham Lincoln.[40] On 3 August 2012,Nimitz departed from Pearl Harbor after a two-day port call, arriving at NAS North Island on 9 August 2012, to beginFleet Replacement Squadron carrier qualifications.[18] On 6 October 2012, aBell Boeing V-22 Osprey tilt-rotor aircraft from squadronVMM-165 landed and refueled on boardNimitz. This operation was part of an evaluation of the feasibility of the MV-22 as a potential replacement for theC-2 Greyhoundcarrier onboard delivery (COD) cargo transport aircraft.[41][42]
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The BBC reported thatNimitz was located in the Persian Gulf, ready to contribute to an operation against Syria when President Obama ordered a military strike. Two days later it was reported that the carrier task group had been re-routed westwards across the Arabian Sea.[43][44]
It was reported thatNimitz, after eight months at sea, transited the Suez Canal on 20 October 2013, into the U.S. 6th Fleet area of responsibility, where the Navy intended to keep her for a few weeks conducting joint training with allied nations before returning home.[45][46]Nimitz returned to Everett on 16 December 2013.[47]
In late 2014, following the completion of work up qualifications,Nimitz participated in her first deployment, a two-week multi-national fleet exercise involving theThird Fleet, as well as ships from theRoyal Canadian Navy andJMSDF.[48] Following the conclusion of the exercise, on 3 November the firstF-35C Lightning II to land on an aircraft carrier recovered aboardNimitz to begin a two-week Development Testing I deployment. This saw a pair of aircraft fromVX-23 undertaking carrier operations of launch, recovery and handling aboard ship in both day and night conditions.[49][50] The initial deployment was completed on 14 November 2014.[51] In 2015,Nimitz transferred to Bremerton to undergo a 16-month maintenance cycle.[52]
On 1 June 2017,Nimitz leftNaval Base Kitsap for her next scheduled deployment.[53] This deployment was againstISIS in Iraq and Syria. Her F/A-18s played an important role in theBattle of Tal Afar, providing precision air support for advancing Iraqi soldiers.[54]
On 1 March 2018,Nimitz entereddry dock atPuget Sound Naval Shipyard for ten months of overhaul.[55]
In April 2020, thecoronavirus was reported to have spread toNimitz when the first case was reported on 7 April.[56][57] One sailor had received a positive result the previous week after exhibiting symptoms, and was subsequently placed in isolation and removed from the ship.[56] Another crew member also tested positive, but was reported to have not been working on the ship.[57] On 27 April,Nimitz completed a 27-day quarantine and beganCOMPTUEX training.[58]
On 5 July 2020, the ship was deployed in theSouth China Sea along withUSS Ronald Reagan. On 31 December, actingSecretary of DefenseChris Miller orderedNimitz to return directly to her home port following a nearly ten-month deployment in theFifth Fleet area of operation.[59] The carrier was at the time supporting the withdrawal of U.S. troops in Somalia along withUSS Makin Island and heramphibious ready group.[60] On 3 January 2021, in an abrupt reversal, acting Defense Secretary Miller orderedNimitz to redeploy due to "Recent threats issued by Iranian leaders against President Trump and other U.S. government officials."[61]
In May 2022,Nimitz ledCarrier Strike Group 11 in theEastern Pacific Ocean.[62] On 28 November 2022,Nimitz departedKitsap and sailed toSan Diego to pick up the carrier strike group leadership.[63] She left San Diego on 3 December, for her Pacific deployment leading Carrier Strike Group 11 and embarkingCarrier Air Wing 17.[64]
Nimitz logged her 350,000th arrested landing on 22 April 2023.[65]
TheNimitz-class carriers have a lifespan of approximately 50 years. Estimates on decommissioning forNimitz herself were updated in April 2022, with the Navy Press Corps indicating that, “USSNimitz (CVN 68) was planned to be removed from the battle force in fiscal year (FY) 2025, when the Ship Terminal Off-load Program (STOP) begins, with inactivation scheduled to begin in 2027.”[66]
In March 2025, the Navy announced thatNimitz would deploy one last time, then arrive at her new homeport of Norfolk Naval Station in Virginia no later than 12 April 2026. At that point she will begin the one-year STOP process before shifting to the HII-Newport News shipyard for initial defueling and deactivation.[67]
  |  |  |
  |  |  |
.svg) |  |  |
| Navy Unit Commendation with twostars | Meritorious Unit Commendation | Navy E Ribbon with four Battle "E" devices | |||
| Navy Expeditionary Medal with six stars | National Defense Service Medal with one star | Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal with fourstars | |||
| Southwest Asia Service Medal | Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary Medal with one star | Sea Service Deployment Ribbon with eleven stars |
The Final Countdown, a 1980 alternate history science fiction film about a contemporary aircraft carrier that travels through time to the day before the 1941attack on Pearl Harbor, was set and filmed on board the real-life USSNimitz.[68]
Nimitz is the focus ofThe Big Aircraft Carrier in Little Mammoth Media'sBIG Adventure Series. In it, they talk how the navy ship works for children including a complete tour of the carrier, how the sailors and pilots work and even all the training they undertake.[69]
ThePBS seriesCarrier followed the May–November 2005 deployment ofNimitz to the Persian Gulf, documenting the life and shipboard routines of the crew over ten episodes.[70]
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This article incorporates text from thepublic domainDictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships. The entry can be foundhere.| International | |
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