USS Nimitz

USS Nimitz is a supercarrier of the United States Navy, and the lead ship of her class. The ship was named after World War II Pacific fleet commander Chester W. Nimitz, USN,, who was the Navy’s third fleet admiral. She is now the oldest U.S. aircraft carrier in service.

About USS Nimitz in brief

Summary USS NimitzUSS Nimitz is a supercarrier of the United States Navy, and the lead ship of her class. The ship was named after World War II Pacific fleet commander Chester W. Nimitz, USN,, who was the Navy’s third fleet admiral. Nimitz had her homeport at Naval Station Norfolk until 1987, when she was relocated to Naval Station Bremerton in Washington. Following her Refueling and Complex Overhaul in 2001, her home port was changed to Naval Air Station North Island in San Diego County, California. In January 2015, Nimitz changed home port from Everett back to Naval Base Kitsap. With the inactivation of USS Enterprise in 2012 and decommissioning in 2017, she is now the oldest U.S. aircraft carrier in service. She is also the oldest serving aircraft carrier. in the world. The vessel was christened on 13 May 1972 by Catherine Nimitz Lay, the daughter of the late Admiral Nimitz. She was commissioned on 3 May 1975 by the 38th President, Gerald R. Ford, and was authorized by the U. S. Congress in fiscal year 1967 and Newport News Shipbuilding and Dry Dock Co. in Newport News, Virginia, was awarded the USD 106. 5 million. The keel was laid down on 22 June 1968, and she was commissioned as CVAN-68 on 30 June 1975. She first deployed to the Mediterranean Sea on 7 July 1976 with Carrier Air Wing 8 embarked in company with the nuclear-powered cruisers USS South Carolina and USS California. On 26 May 1981, a Marine Corps EA-6B Prowler assigned to Carrier air wing 8 crashed on the flight deck, killing 14 crewmen and injuring 45 others.

Despite having no connection to the accident, the media focused on the autopsy results of several members of the Nimitz’s enlisted flight deck crew who were killed, who tested positive for marijuana. As a result, President Ronald Reagan instituted a \”Zero Tolerance Tolerance policy across all of the armed services, which started the mandatory drug testing of all military personnel in 1981. On August 19, 1981, the ship deployed again to the Gulf of Sidra near Libya in international waters in two exercises with USS Forrestal, with Nimitz as the flagship of the strike group and the home of the commander of Destroyer Squadron 23. After four months on station, Operation Evening Light was launched from Nimitz’s decks. The mission was aborted after a helicopter crashed at a refueling point in the Iranian desert. After a second uneventful Mediterranean cruise was conducted from 1 December 1977 to 20 July 1978. The third deployment began on 10 September 1979 to theiterranean. The ship moved to the Indian Ocean in response to the Iran hostage crisis in which 52 hostages were held. Prior to this trip, the movie The Final Countdown, whose story was specifically set aboard the Nimtz, was filmed on board the carrier. The carrier returned home 26 May 1980, having spent 144 days at sea.