The U.S. Navy’s last conventionally powered aircraft carrier finally arrives in Texas for scrapping

After completing a voyage across the Atlantic Ocean, following the Florida Peninsula and crossing the Gulf of Mexico, the U.S. Navy’s last conventionally powered aircraft carrier, the former USS John F. Kennedy (CV-67), has finally arrived in Brownsville, Texas. The vessel began its journey in mid-January, being towed to the facilities of International Shipbreaking Limited, where it will be dismantled, bringing an end to decades of service.

The former USS John F. Kennedy (CV-67) was the last conventionally powered aircraft carrier built for the U.S. Navy. Commissioned in 1968, it amassed a 39-year operational history in various parts of the world until its official decommissioning in 2009. Since then, several options were considered for its final fate, including converting it into a museum. However, the final decision was to sell it for scrapping at the symbolic price of one cent.

This issue must be properly contextualized, as the dismantling of such ships—82,000-ton vessels with a length of 326 meters and a beam of 40 meters—highlights the challenges that a global power like the United States faces in the final disposal of its aircraft carriers. With the future retirement of nuclear-powered carriers, the situation is expected to become even more complex, not only due to the scrapping of steel and the handling of nuclear reactors but also because of the high costs involved.

As reported by the Government Accountability Office (GAO) in a 2018 document, using the USS Enterprise, the first U.S. nuclear-powered aircraft carrier, as an example, the projected cost of its dismantling could reach $1.55 billion.

Returning to the former USS John F. Kennedy (CV-67), the old Kitty Hawk-class aircraft carrier—although, due to extensive modifications, it was practically a subclass of its own—was nicknamed “Big John.” It had been stationed in Philadelphia for over a decade before departing on January 16.

After weeks of being towed, the carrier finally arrived in Brownsville, Texas, in early February, where it was taken to the facilities of International Shipbreaking Limited. There, this giant, which sailed the seas for 39 years and became a symbol of U.S. naval power wherever its silhouette appeared on the horizon, will now be dismantled.

Photos used for illustration: departure from Philadelphia in mid-January 2025.

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