Content:

Background
Battle Group
Naming & numbering

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Other military pages

Aircraft Carriers (USN)

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Background and brief history

     Although the 01st launch of an airplane from a stationary warship was in 1910, and the first launch from a moving warship in 1912, aircraft carriers really started being used in naval warfare around the end of the 01st World War (circa 1918).
     The aircraft carrier's primary function in life is to allow the rapid deployment of some 80 attack and fighter/bomber aircraft (i.e. Hornets and Tomcats) at short notice and far from land based airfields. For this ± 5000 people are employed to ensure that everything runs smoothly especially when each ± 1000 foot long carrier costs $5 billion to build*.
(*NB Aircraft carriers come in 2 configurations: Flat tops used by USN and Ski jumps used the R.N.)
     As the cost of building and upkeeping an aircraft carrier is so high only 9 countries in the Word today possess aircraft carriers, these countries being: France, India, Russia, Spain, Brazil, Italy, Thailand, the United Kingdom and principally the United States*
(*The People's Republic of China's People's Liberation Army Navy has acquired the former Soviet aircraft carrier "Varyag" but there are reports that the P.R.L.A.N. are not actually operating the carrier)

     Because of their value, both economic and strategic, aircraft carriers are generally form part of what is called a "Battle Group".
It must, at this point, be explained that although Battle groups are an integral part of Naval tactics they are not permanent but are created and dissolved on an "as needed" basis (i.e. maneuvers in the Persian gulf...)

Battle group

1- Composition. An aircraft carrier battle group is invariably composed of the aircraft carrier itself, a supply class replenishments ship, defense ships (a Frigate and/or a destroyer, a Hunter/Seeker, Los Angeles class submarine not forgetting the carrier's airborne support/defense in the form of a fighter detachment/squadron as well an all-weather, tactical battle management, airborne command and control/early warning aircraft (a Grumman E-2C Hawkeye) and a helicopter detail for ravitalment, search and rescue and anti-submarine functions.

2- Strategy (including geography)

3- Role

4- Line of commandment. The Battle group is generally under the command of an Admiral (exact rank TBC) or a colonel/captain(find exact USN rank)

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photo courtesy of Petty Officer 2nd Class Jim Vidrine, U.S. Navy.

Legend to the Battle group2 picture:

     The aircraft carriers USS Enterprise (CVN 65) (top) and USS George Washington (CVN 73); the fast combat support ship USS Supply (AOE 6) (center) and the ammunition ship USS Mount Baker (AE 34) (bottom) steam in formation in the waters of the western Mediterranean Sea during turnover operations on July 12, 1996. The Enterprise Battle Group is relieving the Washington Battle Group in the Mediterranean Sea. The USS Enterprise, the Navy's oldest active, nuclear powered aircraft carrier, returns to sea for her first scheduled deployment in several years following a complex overhaul.

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US Aircraft Carriers: Naming & numbering

     Naming: Aircraft carriers were traditionally named for famous ships (many of which, in turn, had been named for famous battles), but there were several exceptions to this scheme, even during WWII.

     Numbering: 'Fleet' carriers (CV), light carriers (CVL), 'battle' (large) carriers (CVB), attack carriers (CVA) and antisubmarine carriers (CVS) were all numbered in a single series, designated "CVx xx", from the start of the carrier era.

     Every ship in the US Navy has a standard designation that identifies the ship's purpose and the sequence in which it was built. For the Enterprise and similar ships, the designation means:

C - Carrier
V - Fixed-Wing Aircraft
A - Multi-Mission
N - Nuclear-Powered

     WWII-era carriers were limited as to the types of planes they could handle, and were not necessarily designed to accommodate newer and different models of aircraft as they became available. Most aircraft carriers prior to the Big E were designated as CV's. The first CVA was the USS Forrestal (CVA-59), which was commissioned on October 1, 1955.

     The multi-mission launch and recovery platforms can be easily adjusted to accommodate a very large variety of aircraft and different types of missions. One aspect of this is the ability to adjust the thrust of the catapults and the tension on the landing wires for the different power and weight requirements for each plane. As this is now a standard feature of all carriers and no longer a uniquely identifying characteristic, the 'A' in the designations is no longer used

     Following is a list, past (?) and present, of the principal US aircraft carriers, listed numerically and alphabetically

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     The US Navy has various other aircraft carriers fulfilling specific roles such as the "Escort Aircraft Carriers".

     Naming: Most escort carriers were initially named for various bays, but a great many were renamed in honor of WWII battles prior to commissioning.

     Numbering: Ships of this type were initially designated as auxiliary aircraft escort vessels (AVG); this was changed to auxiliary aircraft carrier (ACV) 20 August 1942. On 15 July 1943 all were redesignated escort aircraft carriers, CVE. This designation is used throughout the list for convenience.

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