While sailing on a circumnavigation of the American continent, ultimately bound for Naval Station Norfolk on the east coast of the United States, the nuclear-powered aircraft carrier USS Nimitz is drawing particular attention. This is because the lead ship of the namesake class of U.S. supercarriers appears to be going through what could be its final months of service, following an operational history spanning more than half a century. Nevertheless, according to sources within the U.S. Navy — whose statements have gained traction in recent hours — the retirement of USS Nimitz could be reconsidered, pushing back the date that had set its decommissioning during 2026 to the following year, 2027.
Currently, the lead ship of the Nimitz class is conducting a voyage that began days ago in Bremerton, Washington, with its destination set for Naval Station Norfolk, where the process of retiring the ship from service and the beginning of specialized procedures for the removal of nuclear fuel from its reactors were originally expected to take place.
Recently, coinciding with the port call that Nimitz completed in San Diego days ago, U.S. Navy sources confirmed that the service now expects the carrier’s decommissioning to take place in 2027, thus extending its service for several additional months. This comes at a time when the U.S. surface fleet is facing high operational demands in terms of availability and is in the midst of transitioning toward a new class of supercarriers.
First, it should be noted that the current conflict with Iran has required the operational deployment of the aircraft carrier USS Gerald R. Ford — the most modern in the U.S. fleet and the lead ship of the class that will eventually replace the Nimitz class — to be extended.
Various analyses have raised concerns regarding the prolonged deployment of the Ford, which has accumulated more than two hundred days of operations across several theaters. This included operations in Europe in the middle of last year, after which the carrier was sent to the Caribbean and later returned to the Old Continent to begin its transit toward the U.S. Central Command’s Area of Responsibility. Currently, the ship is operating in the Red Sea in support of Operation Epic Fury alongside the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln.
Secondly, it should also be noted that the change in the retirement date of Nimitz to 2027 would coincide with the upcoming delivery of the new aircraft carrier USS John F. Kennedy, the second ship of the Gerald R. Ford class, which is currently undergoing trials and evaluations prior to its acceptance by the U.S. Navy.
With this decision, the current size of the U.S. aircraft carrier fleet would remain constant at eleven ships, which rotate between fully operational units, those in readiness and preparation phases, and those undergoing maintenance, overhaul, and repairs.
Finally, within the framework of the circumnavigation that the aircraft carrier Nimitz is conducting around the American continent, expectations among countries in the region are high regarding the possibility of PASSEX-type exercises, similar to what occurred in 2024 with the transit of the aircraft carrier USS George Washington during the Southern Seas 2024 deployment.
Photographs used for illustrative purposes.
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