Does the US have nuclear-powered aircraft carriers?
Table of Contents
Does the US have nuclear-powered aircraft carriers?
All US aircraft carriers and submarines are nuclear-powered. There were 10 Nimitz-class carriers in service (CVN 68-77), each designed for 50-year service life with one mid-life refuelling and complex overhaul of their two A4W Westinghouse reactors*.
To deliver that, we need to rebuild the shipbuilding plan. With the cancellation of the Attack-class submarine, the plan to build Australia’s industrial capability is in disarray. We’ve created the foundations of a national naval shipbuilding machine by massive investments in modern, digital shipyards.
Why does Australia need a dedicated aircraft carrier?
The introduction of a dedicated aircraft carrier benefits Australian industry as well, through increased procurement programs for support and escort vessels, larger F-35 supply chain contributions and larger sustainment and maintenance contracts, which are key to keeping the Navy ‘ battle ready and deployed ‘.
Are America’s aircraft carriers vulnerable to attack?
Some ideas never go out of fashion, no matter how unfounded they are. One such idea is the belief that America’s large-deck, nuclear-powered aircraft carriers are vulnerable to attack by [insert latest threat here].
Navy planners are confident they can do that, relying on a layered defense that includes the carrier’s air wing, networked escort vessels hosting the world’s most advanced air defense system, a redundant overhead reconnaissance capability and the carrier’s own onboard defenses.
United States of America. The U.S. Navy currently operates eleven aircraft carriers, the ten carriers of the older Nimitz class and the USS Gerald R. Ford, the first of the Ford-class carriers. The $17 billion Ford was commissioned into the Navy in July 2017.