USS Dwight D. Eisenhower CVN 69

Fact Sheet

Dimensions

  • Length of flight deck: 1,092 ft.

  • Width of flight deck: 252 ft.

  • Height keel to mast: 244 ft. (equal to 24-story building)

  • Area of flight deck: 4.5 acres

  • Weight of carrier: 95,000 tons

Propulsion System

  • Type: Nuclear reactor

  • Number of reactors: 2

  • Maximum speed: More than 30 knots

  • Number of screws: 4 (5 bladed - 25 ft. tall - Bronze)

  • Weight of screws: 66,200 lbs. each

  • Number of rudders: 2 (29 ft. by 22 ft., 60,000 lbs.)

Flight Deck/Air Wing

  • Number of catapults: 4

  • Number of aircraft elevators: 4 (3,880 sq. ft.)

  • Size of Air Wing: approximately 75 aircraft

Miscellaneous

  • Builder: Newport News Shipbuilding, Newport News , Va.

  • Keel laid: Aug. 15, 1970

  • Launched: Oct. 11, 1975

  • Commissioned: Oct. 18, 1977

  • Planned crew size: 6,287 (including air wing)

  • Number of anchors: 2

  • Weight of anchors: 60,000 lbs. each

  • Anchor chain: 1,082 ft. on each anchor (365 lbs. per link)

  • Total anchor weight including chain: 735,000 lbs. each

  • Distillation plant capacity: 400,000 gals

  • Armament: Two or three (depending on modification) NATO Sea Sparrow launchers, 3-20mm Phalanx CIWS mounts

  • Number of light fixtures: approx. 29,000

  • IKE is as long as the Empire State Building is tall

  • Fully loaded, it displaces almost 100,000 tons of water.

  • The flight deck is 4.5 acres of sovereign territory, no matter where we are.

  • IKE is 24 stories tall, from keel to "Vulture's Row."

  • It's home to upwards of 5,000 of this country's smartest and hardest-working young men and women.

  • The average age of the men and women entrusted to maintain this ship is only 19-and-a-half!

Mission

.....The mission of USS Dwight D. Eisenhower (CVN 69) is to provide sea-based tactical air power for defense of America 's right to freedom of the seas as well as the protection of United States sovereignty. USS Dwight D. Eisenhower is capable of projecting tactical air power over the sea and inland, as well as providing sea-based air defense and anti-submarine warfare capabilities. IKE can execute response options ranging from peacetime presence to general war.

.....The air wing can destroy enemy aircraft, ships, submarines, and land targets, or lay mines hundreds of miles from the ship. USS Dwight D. Eisenhower's aircraft are used to conduct strikes, support land battles, protect the battle group or other friendly shipping, and implement a sea or air blockade. The air wing provides a visible presence to demonstrate American power and resolve in a crisis. The ship normally operates as the centerpiece of a carrier battle group commanded by a flag officer embarked in USS Dwight D. Eisenhower and consisting of four-to-six other ships.

.....USS Dwight D. Eisenhower's two nuclear reactors give her virtually unlimited range and endurance and a top speed in excess of 30 knots. The ship's four catapults and four arresting gear engines enable her to launch and recover aircraft rapidly and simultaneously. The ship carries approximately three million gallons of fuel for her aircraft and escorts, and enough weapons and stores for extended operations without replenishment. USS Dwight D. Eisenhower also has extensive repair capabilities, including a fully equipped Aircraft Intermediate Maintenance Department, a micro-miniature electronics repair shop, and numerous ship repair shops.

.....One of the largest warships in the world, USS Dwight D. Eisenhower (CVN 69) displaces 95,000 tons fully loaded and has a 4.5 acre flight deck to support as many as 100 embarked aircraft. IKE's two nuclear reactors can provide energy for more than 18 years of operation without refueling and can furnish power to propel the ship in excess of 30 knots.

.....Because IKE does not require conventional fuel for propulsion, additional space is available for added aircraft fuel and ordnance storage.

History

.....Construction of the third nuclear-powered and second Nimitz-class aircraft carrier, USS Dwight D. Eisenhower (CVN 69) was authorized by Congress in fiscal year 1970.

.....The carrier, named after the nation's 34th president, was christened at 11:11 a.m. , Oct. 11, 1975 , by Mrs. Mamie Doud-Eisenhower, the ship's sponsor and widow of the late president.  IKE was commissioned on Oct. 18, 1977 , under the command of Capt. William E. Ramsey, USN, and assigned to the Atlantic Fleet. After 14 months of fleet training, IKE set sail for her first Mediterranean deployment.

.....Since that time, IKE has completed nine Mediterranean deployments.  In 1980, IKE's second extended deployment tallied 254 days at sea with only a five-day stopover in Singapore .

.....After its fourth deployment IKE sailed into Newport News and Dry-dock in October 1985 for a complex overhaul.  The 18-month yard period included the addition of the Close-in Weapons System, NATO Sea Sparrow Missile System, Navy Tactical Data System, Anti-Submarine Warfare module, communications upgrades and rehabilitation of 1,831 berths in 25 compartments.  IKE re-entered the fleet in April 1987.

.....In 1990, IKE completed its sixth Mediterranean Sea deployment.  The deployment became a commemorative event in the worldwide 'Dwight D. Eisenhower Centennial,' celebrating the 100th anniversary of the late president's birth.  During D-Day anniversary ceremonies off the coast of Normandy , IKE's son, John Eisenhower, and D-Day veterans embarked in the ship while Carrier Air Wing Seven conducted a memorial flyover of the American cemetery at Omaha Beach .

.....In response to Iraq 's invasion of Kuwait , IKE became the first carrier to conduct sustained operations in the Red Sea .  IKE was the second nuclear-powered aircraft carrier to transit the Suez canal .  IKE served as a ready striking force in the event Iraq invaded Saudi Arabia, and participated in maritime interception operations in support of a United National embargo against Iraq .

.....After completion of an extensive shipyard period and work ups, IKE deployed Sept. 26, 1991 to the Arabian Gulf to continue multi-national operations with coalition forces in support of Operation Desert Storm.  IKE returned to Norfolk April 2, 1992 . On Jan. 6, 1993 , IKE entered Norfolk Naval Shipyard for overhaul and conversion, and returned to the fleet November 12, 1993 .

.....In September 1994, IKE and the U.S. Army 10th Mountain Division again made history with the concept of "adaptive force packaging."  The division's soldiers and equipment were loaded on board, and the IKE Army and Navy team headed for Port-au-Prince to spearhead Operation Uphold Democracy, the U.S. - led effort to restore the democratically elected government of Haiti .

.....One month later, in October 1994, IKE departed for a six-month deployment which included flying missions in support of Operations Southern Watch and Deny Flight.  This deployment marked the first time that women had deployed as crew members of a U.S. Navy combatant. The IKE, Carrier Wing Three, and COMCRUDESGRU Eight team included more than 400 women.

.....IKE returned to Newport News Shipbuilding on July 17, 1995 , for an 18-month complex overhaul which was completed on Jan. 27, 1997 . The ship departed on its 10th deployment on June 10,1998 and returned in December. In February 1999, IKE returned to the Norfolk Navy Shipyard for a six-month refitting and returned to the fleet in June. Upon completion in June 1999, she returned to full duty in the fleet.

.....In February of 2000, IKE departed Norfolk , Va. , for its "Millennium Cruise" to the Mediterranean Sea and the Persian Gulf .  After six months at sea and a variety of port calls including Haifa ,  Bahrain , and Lisbon , IKE returned to Norfolk in August of 2000.  This deployment marked a milestone in the ship's history, when the air wing dropped ordinance for the first time ever "in anger," in support of Operation Southern Watch in Iraq .

.....In early 2001, IKE underwent the Ship's Coordinated Offload and Outfitting Plan (SCOOP) in preparation for the mid-life rehabilitation. On May 24 of 2001, IKE entered the Northrop Grumman Newport News shipyard (NGNN) for her mid-life Refueling and Complex Overhaul. The yard period accounted for more than half the ship's life-time budget as nearly every space and system onboard was upgraded and overhauled.

.....On Jan. 25, 2005 , after almost four years at NGNN, IKE returned to her homeport at Naval Station Norfolk, Va.

Return to USS Dewight D Eisenhower.