• Next-generation aircraft carrier taking shape in Newport News

    Steve Helber / AP

    Shipyard workers watch as the lower bow section of the nuclear powered aircraft carrier Gerald R. Ford is lowered into position at Newport News Shipbuilding in Newport News, Va., on Thursday. The first-of-its class aircraft carrier will be the nation's 11th in service once it is delivered to the Navy in 2015.

    Steve Helber / AP

    A shipyard worker stands in the lower hull as the lower bow section of the nuclear powered aircraft carrier Gerald R. Ford is lowered into position at Newport News Shipbuilding in Newport News, Va., Thursday.

    Steve Helber / AP

    The lower bow section of the nuclear powered aircraft carrier Gerald R. Ford is lowered into position at Newport News Shipbuilding.

    According to Wikipedia, this carrier's two nuclear power plants will give it unlimited range for about 20 years.

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  • Carrier USS Carl Vinson departs for Western Pacific

    Gregory Bull / AP

    Kristian Tarang, 1, wears a sailor costume as he waits with his mother, Genessis Tarang, alongside the USS Carl Vinson aircraft carrier as the ship is prepared for deployment Wednesday, Nov. 30, 2011, in Coronado, Calif. The aircraft carrier is scheduled to deploy Wednesday to the Western Pacific, along with the USS Bunker Hill and the USS Halsey. Tarang's husband, Petty Officer Third Class Eli Tarang, is onboard the aircraft carrier.

    NBCSanDiego.com reports:

    Families say goodbye to sailors aboard the aircraft carrier USS Carl Vinson Wednesday morning, which departs for the Middle East from Coronado.

    The ship was scheduled to leave in the morning, but encountered a mechanical issue and may have to wait until high tide returns to depart. As of 11 a.m., the captain told sailors to stand down, as fog was obstructing visibility.

    Before its return to San Diego, the carrier conducted Osama Bin Laden’s burial at sea after a Navy SEAL team killed him in Pakistan in May.

    Gregory Bull / AP

    Sailors wave from the flight deck of the USS Carl Vinson aircraft carrier as the ship is prepared for deployment Wednesday, Nov. 30, 2011, in Coronado, Calif.

     

     

     

  • USS Carl Vinson returns home after busy deployment

    By Rich Shulman

    Maybe it's time for the Mission Accomplished banner. As NBCSanDiego.com reported:

    It has been an action-packed seven months at sea for sailors aboard the USS Carl Vinson -- which included the historic sea burial of al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden. On Wednesday morning, the carrier returned home.

    During its deployment, the USS Carl Vinson dealt with pirates, a jet engine that caught fire, and, most prominently, a historic event when bin Laden's body was placed on the ship before his burial at sea.

    Denis Poroy / Reuters

    U.S. Navy sailor Kyle Cook kisses his wife Victoria Cook as he holds his son Elijah Cook after the USS Carl Vinson aircraft carrier returned to its homeport at Naval Station North Island in Coronado, California June 15. The USS Carl Vinson returned from a seven month deployment that became historic last month when the aircraft carrier buried Osama bin Laden at sea.


    Gregory Bull / AP

    People wait for sailors to disembark from the aircraft carrier USS Carl Vinson Wednesday, June 15, in San Diego. The U.S. Navy aircraft carrier from which the body of Osama bin Laden was buried at sea has returned to its home port in San Diego Bay.

    Gregory Bull / AP

    Families wait for sailors to disembark from the U.S. Navy aircraft carrier USS Carl Vinson Wednesday, June 15, in San Diego. The U.S. Navy aircraft carrier from which the body of Osama bin Laden was buried at sea has returned to its home port in San Diego Bay.