USS Enterprise (CVN-65)

USS Enterprise (CVN-65)

USS Enterprise (CVN-65), formerly CVA(N)-65, is the world's first nuclear-powered aircraft carrier and the eighth United States naval vessel to bear the name. Like her predecessor of World War II fame, she is nicknamed the "Big E". At 1,123 ft (342 m), she is the longest naval vessel in the world. Her 93,284 long tons (94,781 t) displacement ranks her as the 11th-heaviest supercarrier, after the 10 carriers of the Nimitz class. Enterprise has a crew of some 4,600 people.

The only ship of her class, Enterprise is the second oldest commissioned vessel in the United States Navy, after the wooden-hulled, three-masted frigate USS Constitution. She was originally scheduled for decommissioning in 2014 or 2015, depending on the life of her reactors and completion of her replacement, USS Gerald R. Ford (CVN-78). But the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2010 slated the ship's retirement for 2013, when she will have served for 51 consecutive years, longer than any other U.S. aircraft carrier.

Enterprise's home port is at Naval Station Norfolk, Virginia as of September 2012. Her final deployment, the last before her decommissioning, began on 10 March 2012 and ended 4 November 2012. She is scheduled to be deactivated on 1 December 2012.