USS Gerald R. Ford (CVN-78), foreground, alongside USS Harry S. Truman (CVN-75), rear, in 2020

USS Enterprise (CVN-65), foreground, and USS Dwight D. Eisenhower (CVN-69), rear, in 2011

USS Saratoga (CV-60), top, with USS John F. Kennedy (CV-67), center, in 1990

Ships of the United States Navy
Ships in current service
Current ships
Ships grouped alphabetically
A–B C D–F G–H I–K L M N–O P Q–R S T–V W–Z
Ships grouped by type
Aircraft carriers Airships Amphibious warfare ships Auxiliaries Battlecruisers Battleships Cruisers Destroyers Destroyer escorts Escort carriers Frigates Mine warfare vessels Monitors Oilers Patrol vessels Registered civilian vessels Sailing frigates Steam frigates Steam gunboats Ships of the line Sloops of war Submarines Torpedo boats Torpedo retrievers Unclassified miscellaneous Yard and district craft
v t e

Aircraft carriers are warships that act as airbases for carrier-based aircraft. In the United States Navy, these consist of ships commissioned with hull classification symbols CV (aircraft carrier), CVA (attack aircraft carrier), CVB (large aircraft carrier), CVL (light aircraft carrier), CVN (aircraft carrier (nuclear propulsion)). Beginning with the Forrestal-class, (CV-59 to present) all carriers commissioned into service are classified as supercarriers.

The United States Navy has also used escort aircraft carriers (CVE, previously AVG and ACV) and airship aircraft carriers (ZRS). In addition, various amphibious warfare ships (LHA, LHD, LPH, and to a lesser degree LPD and LSD classes) can operate as carriers; two of these were converted to mine countermeasures support ships (MCS), one of which carried minesweeping helicopters. All of these classes of ships have their own lists and so are not included here.

Historical overview

The first aircraft carrier commissioned into the United States Navy was USS Langley (CV-1) on 20 March 1922. The Langley was a converted Proteus-class collier (originally commissioned as USS Jupiter (AC-3),^[1] Langley was soon followed by the Lexington-class, USS Ranger (the first purpose-built carrier in the American fleet), the Yorktown-class, and USS Wasp. These classes made up the entirety of the United States carrier fleet active prior to the Second World War.^[2]

With World War II looming, two more classes of carriers were commissioned under President Franklin Roosevelt: the Essex-class, which are informally divided into regular bow and extended bow sub-classes, and the Independence-class, which are classified as light aircraft carriers.^[3] Between these two classes, 35 ships were completed.^[4] During this time, the Navy also purchased two training vessels, USS Wolverine and USS Sable, which were given the unclassified miscellaneous (IX) hull designation.^[5][6]

Late in World War II the Midway-class and the Saipan-class were constructed, but entered service too late to serve in the war. The Midway-class would go on to serve during the entire Cold War.^[7]

At the start of the Cold War, the first supercarriers, the United States-class, were canceled due to the Truman administration's policy of shrinking the United States Navy and in particular, the Navy's air assets. The policy was eventually revised after a public outcry and Congressional hearings sparked by the Revolt of the Admirals.^[8]

Later in the Cold War era, the first of the supercarriers to be launched were constructed, starting with the Forrestal-class,^[9] followed by the Kitty Hawk-class; Enterprise (CVN-65), the first nuclear powered carrier; and John F. Kennedy (CV-67), the last conventionally powered carrier. These were then followed by the Nimitz-class and the modern day post-cold war Gerald R. Ford-class nuclear supercarriers, the only two classes of supercarriers that are currently in active-duty service.^[10] With the ten-ship Nimitz-class complete by 2009, October 2013 saw the launch of Gerald R. Ford, lead ship of the planned ten-ship Gerald R. Ford-class. This was followed by the launch of John F. Kennedy (CVN-79) in October 2019, while construction is underway on Enterprise (CVN-80) and Doris Miller (CVN-81).^[15]

List

Keys

•    out of service
•    in active service
•    cancelled prior to completion
•    under construction
•    on order

List of aircraft carriers of the United States Navy

Hull no.	Name	Image	Class	Commissioned	Decommissioned	Service life	Status	Ref.
CV-1	Langley		Langley (lead ship)	20 March 1922	27 February 1942	19 years, 344 days	Sunk near Cilacap, Java in 1942	[16][17][18]
CV-2	Lexington		Lexington (lead ship)	14 December 1927	8 May 1942	14 years, 145 days	Sunk in the Battle of the Coral Sea in 1942	[18][19]
CV-3	Saratoga		Lexington	16 November 1927	26 July 1946	18 years, 254 days	Sunk as target ship near Bikini Atoll during Operation Crossroads in 1946	[18][20]
CV-4	Ranger		Ranger (lead ship)	4 June 1934	18 October 1946	12 years, 136 days	Scrapped in 1947	[21]
CV-5	Yorktown		Yorktown (lead ship)	30 September 1937	7 June 1942	4 years, 250 days	Sunk in the Battle of Midway in 1942	[22]
CV-6	Enterprise		Yorktown	12 May 1938	17 February 1947	8 years, 281 days	Scrapped in 1960	[23]
CV-7	Wasp		Wasp (lead ship)	25 April 1940	15 September 1942	2 years, 143 days	Sunk during the Guadalcanal campaign in 1942	[24]
CV-8	Hornet		Yorktown	20 October 1941	27 October 1942	1 year, 7 days	Sunk in the Battle of the Santa Cruz Islands in 1942	[25][26]
CV-9	Essex		Essex (lead ship)	31 December 1942	20 June 1969	26 years, 171 days	Scrapped in 1975	[27]
CV-10	Yorktown		Essex	15 April 1943	27 June 1970	27 years, 73 days	Preserved at the Patriot's Point Naval & Maritime Museum—Mount Pleasant, South Carolina, USA	[28]
CV-11	Intrepid		Essex	16 August 1943	15 March 1974	30 years, 211 days	Preserved at the Intrepid Sea-Air-Space Museum—New York City, New York, USA	[29]
CV-12	Hornet		Essex	29 November 1943	26 May 1970	26 years, 187 days	Preserved at USS Hornet Museum—Alameda, California, USA	[30]
CV-13	Franklin		Essex	31 January 1944	17 February 1947	2 years, 351 days	Scrapped in 1966	[31]
CV-14	Ticonderoga		Essex (extended bow)	8 May 1944	1 September 1973	29 years, 116 days	Scrapped in 1975	[32]
CV-15	Randolph		Essex (extended bow)	9 October 1944	13 February 1969	24 years, 127 days	Scrapped in 1975	[33]
CV-16	Lexington		Essex	17 February 1943	8 November 1991	48 years, 264 days	Preserved at USS Lexington Museum on the Bay— Corpus Christi, Texas, USA	[34]
CV-17	Bunker Hill		Essex	25 May 1943	9 July 1947	4 years, 45 days	Scrapped in 1973	[35][36][37]
CV-18	Wasp		Essex	24 November 1943	1 July 1972	28 years, 220 days	Scrapped in 1973	[38]
CV-19	Hancock		Essex (extended bow)	15 April 1944	30 January 1976	31 years, 290 days	Scrapped in 1976	[39]
CV-20	Bennington		Essex	6 August 1944	15 January 1970	25 years, 162 days	Scrapped in 1994	[40]
CV-21	Boxer		Essex (extended bow)	16 April 1945	1 December 1969	24 years, 229 days	Scrapped in 1971	[41]
CVL-22	Independence		Independence (lead ship)	14 January 1943	28 August 1946	3 years, 226 days	Sunk as target ship near the Farallon Islands in 1951	[42]
CVL-23	Princeton		Independence	25 February 1943	24 October 1944	1 year, 242 days	Sunk in the Battle of Leyte Gulf in 1944	[14]
CVL-24	Belleau Wood		Independence	31 March 1943	13 January 1947	3 years, 288 days	Scrapped in 1960	[14]
CVL-25	Cowpens		Independence	28 May 1943	13 January 1947	3 years, 230 days	Scrapped in 1960	[14]
CVL-26	Monterey		Independence	17 June 1943	16 January 1956	12 years, 213 days	Scrapped in 1971	[14]
CVL-27	Langley		Independence	31 August 1943	11 February 1947	3 years, 164 days	Scrapped in 1964	[14]
CVL-28	Cabot		Independence	24 July 1943	21 January 1955	11 years, 181 days	Scrapped in 2002	[14]
CVL-29	Bataan		Independence	17 November 1943	9 April 1954	10 years, 143 days	Scrapped in 1961	[43]
CVL-30	San Jacinto		Independence	15 December 1943	1 March 1947	3 years, 76 days	Scrapped in 1972	[14]
CV-31	Bon Homme Richard		Essex	26 November 1944	2 July 1971	26 years, 218 days	Scrapped in 1992	[44]
CV-32	Leyte		Essex (extended bow)	11 April 1946	15 May 1959	13 years, 34 days	Scrapped in 1970	[14]
CV-33	Kearsarge		Essex (extended bow)	2 May 1946	15 January 1970	23 years, 258 days	Scrapped in 1974	[45]
CV-34	Oriskany		Essex (extended bow)	25 September 1950	20 September 1979	28 years, 360 days	Scuttled as artificial reef in the Gulf of Mexico in 2006	[14]
CV-35	Reprisal		Essex (extended bow)	—	—	—	Cancelled during construction. Scrapped in 1949	[46]
CV-36	Antietam		Essex (extended bow)	28 January 1945	8 May 1963	18 years, 100 days	Scrapped in 1974	[47]
CV-37	Princeton		Essex (extended bow)	18 November 1945	30 January 1970	24 years, 73 days	Scrapped in 1971	[citation needed]
CV-38	Shangri-La		Essex (extended bow)	15 September 1944	30 July 1971	26 years, 318 days	Scrapped in 1988	[48]
CV-39	Lake Champlain		Essex (extended bow)	3 July 1945	2 May 1966	20 years, 303 days	Scrapped in 1972	[citation needed]
CV-40	Tarawa		Essex (extended bow)	8 December 1945	13 May 1960	14 years, 157 days	Scrapped in 1968	[citation needed]
CVB-41	Midway		Midway (lead ship)	10 September 1945	11 April 1992	46 years, 214 days	Preserved at the USS Midway Museum—San Diego, California, USA	[49]
CVB-42	Franklin D. Roosevelt		Midway	27 October 1945	1 October 1977	31 years, 339 days	Scrapped in 1978	[50]
CVB-43	Coral Sea		Midway	1 October 1947	26 April 1990	42 years, 207 days	Scrapped in 2000	[51]
CV-44	No name assigned	(no image available)	Midway	—	—	—	Cancelled before construction began.	[52]
CV-45	Valley Forge		Essex (extended bow)	3 November 1946	15 January 1970	23 years, 73 days	Scrapped in 1971	[citation needed]
CV-46	Iwo Jima		Essex (extended bow)	—	—	—	Cancelled during construction. Scrapped in 1949	[53]
CV-47	Philippine Sea		Essex (extended bow)	11 May 1946	28 December 1958	12 years, 231 days	Scrapped in 1971	[citation needed]
CVL-48	Saipan		Saipan (lead ship)	14 July 1946	14 January 1970	23 years, 184 days	Scrapped in 1976	[citation needed]
CVL-49	Wright		Saipan	9 February 1947	15 March 1956	9 years, 35 days	Scrapped in 1980	[14]
CV-50 – CV-55	No names assigned	(no images available)	Essex	These hulls were all cancelled before construction began.				[52]
CVB-56, CVB-57			Midway
CVA-58	United States		United States (lead ship)	—	—	—	Cancelled during construction. Scrapped on slip in 1949	[54]
CV-59	Forrestal		Forrestal (lead ship)	1 October 1955	30 September 1993	37 years, 364 days	Scrapped in 2015	[55] [56] [57]
CV-60	Saratoga		Forrestal	14 April 1956	20 August 1994	38 years, 128 days	Scrapped in 2019	[58]
CV-61	Ranger		Forrestal	10 August 1957	10 July 1993	35 years, 334 days	Scrapped in 2017	[59]
CV-62	Independence		Forrestal	10 January 1959	30 September 1998	39 years, 263 days	Scrapped in 2019	[60]
CV-63	Kitty Hawk		Kitty Hawk (lead ship)	29 April 1961	12 May 2009	48 years, 13 days	Undergoing scrapping	[61][62] [63] [64]
CV-64	Constellation		Kitty Hawk	27 October 1961	7 August 2003	41 years, 284 days	Scrapped in 2017	[65]
CVN-65	Enterprise		Enterprise (lead ship)	25 November 1961	3 February 2017	55 years, 70 days	Struck, to be scrapped	[66]
CV-66	America		Kitty Hawk	23 January 1965	9 August 1996	31 years, 199 days	Sunk as target ship in the Atlantic Ocean in 2005	[67]
CV-67	John F. Kennedy		John F. Kennedy (lead ship)	7 September 1968	23 March 2007	38 years, 197 days	Sold for scrap in 2021	[68] [64]
CVN-68	Nimitz		Nimitz (lead ship)	3 May 1975	—	48 years, 16 days	Stationed at Naval Base Kitsap, Bremerton, Washington	[69]
CVN-69	Dwight D. Eisenhower		Nimitz	18 October 1977	—	45 years, 213 days	Stationed at Naval Station Norfolk, Norfolk, Virginia	[70]
CVN-70	Carl Vinson		Nimitz	13 March 1982	—	41 years, 67 days	Stationed at Naval Air Station North Island, San Diego, California	[71] [72]
CVN-71	Theodore Roosevelt		Nimitz	25 October 1986	—	36 years, 206 days	Stationed at Naval Base Kitsap, Bremerton, Washington	[73] [74]
CVN-72	Abraham Lincoln		Nimitz	11 November 1989	—	33 years, 189 days	Stationed at Naval Air Station North Island, San Diego, California	[75]
CVN-73	George Washington		Nimitz	4 July 1992	—	30 years, 319 days	Stationed at Newport News Shipbuilding, Newport News, Virginia	[76]
CVN-74	John C. Stennis		Nimitz	9 December 1995	—	27 years, 161 days	Stationed at Naval Station Norfolk, Norfolk, Virginia	[77]
CVN-75	Harry S. Truman		Nimitz	25 July 1998	—	24 years, 298 days	Stationed at Naval Station Norfolk, Norfolk, Virginia	[78]
CVN-76	Ronald Reagan		Nimitz	12 July 2003	—	19 years, 311 days	Stationed at Yokosuka Naval Base, Yokosuka, Japan	[79]
CVN-77	George H.W. Bush		Nimitz	10 January 2009	—	14 years, 129 days	Stationed at Naval Station Norfolk, Norfolk, Virginia	[80]
CVN-78	Gerald R. Ford		Gerald R. Ford (lead ship)	22 July 2017	—	5 years, 301 days	Stationed at Naval Station Norfolk, Norfolk, Virginia	[81][82]
CVN-79	John F. Kennedy		Gerald R. Ford	~2024	—	—	Fitting out	[11][83][84]
CVN-80	Enterprise		Gerald R. Ford	~2028	—	—	Under construction	[11][85][12]
CVN-81	Doris Miller		Gerald R. Ford	~2032	—	—	Under construction	[11][86][87]
CVN-82	TBA		Gerald R. Ford	~2034	—	—	Ordered	[11]

Training ships

During World War II, the United States Navy purchased two Great Lakes side-wheel paddle steamers and converted them into freshwater aircraft carrier training ships. Both vessels were designated with the hull classification symbol IX and lacked hangar decks, elevators or armaments. The role of these ships was for the training of pilots for carrier take-offs and landings.^[88] Together the Sable and Wolverine trained 17,820 pilots in 116,000 carrier landings. Of these, 51,000 landings were on Sable.^[89]

#	Name	Image	Class	Commissioned	Decommissioned	Service life	Status	Ref.
IX-64	Wolverine		n/a (converted side-wheel steamer)	12 August 1942	7 November 1945	3 years, 2 months and 26 days	Scrapped in 1947 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, United States	[13][14]
IX-81	Sable		n/a (converted side-wheel steamer)	8 May 1943	7 November 1945	2 years, 5 months and 30 days	Scrapped in 1948 in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada	[13][14]

Aircraft carrier museums

• National Museum of the United States Navy – Aircraft carrier museums