USS Nimitz
USS Nimitz (CVN-68) is an aircraft carrier of the United States Navy, and the lead ship of her class. One of the largest warships in the world, she was laid down, launched, and commissioned as CVAN-68, "aircraft carrier, attack, nuclear powered", but she was later redesignated as CVN-68, "aircraft carrier, multi-mission, nuclear-powered", on 30 June 1975, as part of a fleet-wide realignment that year.
The ship was named after World War II Pacific fleet commander Chester W. Nimitz, USN, (1885–1966), 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 (now part of Naval Base Kitsap). Following her Refueling and Complex Overhaul in 2001, her home port was changed to Naval Air Station North Island in San Diego County, California. The home port of Nimitz was again moved to Naval Station Everett in Washington in 2012.
In January 2015, Nimitz changed home port from Everett back to Naval Base Kitsap.[6] With the inactivation of USS 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.
In popular culture[edit]
The Final Countdown, a 1980 alternate history science fiction film about a contemporary aircraft carrier that travels through time to the day before the 1941 attack on Pearl Harbor, was set and filmed on board the real-life USS Nimitz.[72]
Nimitz is the focus of The Big Aircraft Carrier in Little Mammoth Media's BIG 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.[73]
The PBS series Carrier followed the May–November 2005 deployment of Nimitz to the Persian Gulf, documenting the life and shipboard routines of the crew over 10 episodes.
This article incorporates text from the Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships. The entry can be found here.
