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| Fig. 1: The aircraft carrier USS Enterprise (CVN 65) underway in the Atlantic Ocean. (Source: Wikimedia Commons) |
USS Enterprise (CVN-65) (pictured in Fig 1.) was the first nuclear powered warship in the world. Also she was the eighth ship in the United States Navy to bear the name "Enterprise." Her predecessor was the famous World War II aircraft carrier USS Enterprise (CV-6). Which is where she gets her nickname "Big E" from. She is the longest naval vessel ever constructed at 342 m, and had a displacement of 94,781 tonnes. [1] Enterprise had about 4,600 crew members aboard during deployments.
Nuclear marine propulsion uses the heat produced by a nuclear power plant to propel a ship. The power plant heats water to produce steam to power a turbine. The turbine can either power a gearbox or a electrical generator to spin the propellers. Compared to the other types of propulsion such as oil and coal, nuclear powered ships can operate at much longer intervals before refueling. [2] Also no cargo space for fuel or smoke stacks for exhaust are needed, which allows more space for the crew and other necessary supplies.
The Enterprise was finished in 1961, the only ship built from her class. She was the third longest commissioned ship in US Naval history aster the USS Constitution and the USS Pueblo. Enterprise served for 51 years, and was deployed 25 times. [1]
On February 20th 1962, Enterprise served as a tracking and monitoring station for the Friendship 7 space mission. She was apart of Task Force 135 which was apart of the naval blockade of Cuba during the Cold War. On December 19th 1962, the Enterprise successfully tested a nose-wheel launch bar. Which was able to launch two aircraft within seconds of each other. This system is now used on all aircraft carriers in use today. [1]
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| Fig. 2: Enterprise Cruising Toward the Persian Gulf. (Source: Wikimedia Commons) |
Enterprise was then transferred to the 7th fleet in November 1965. She was then deployed to Vietnam and became the first nuclear-powered vessel to enter combat. During the war she set a record for the most strike sorties in a single day with 165. In April 1968 a American intel gathering vessel was captured by North Korea, and caused a diplomatic crisis. The Enterprise was then deployed to the Sea of Japan, and was one of the biggest shows of force since the Korean war. [1]
On 11 September 2001, the Enterprise was sailing back to the states after a series of exercises with the Royal Navy in Scotland. After the attacks in New York the Enterprise changed course and steamed to the Persian Gulf, outrunning her escorts (seen in Fig. 2). [1] She became one of the first ships to launch attacks against the Taliban. From September 2003 to February 2004 she provided air support to troops during Operation Iraqi Freedom.
The Enterprise was then deactivated on the first of December 2012. She became the first nuclear-powered ship to be deactivated in US history. Some veterans and enthusiasts want the ship to be made into a museum, but the Navy believes it will believe too expensive. At the decommissioning service the the Enterprise it was confirmed the next Ford class nuclear aircraft carrier CVN-80, will be named Enterprise. [2]
© Daniel Roy. The author warrants that the work is the author's own and that Stanford University provided no input other than typesetting and referencing guidelines. The author grants permission to copy, distribute and display this work in unaltered form, with attribution to the author, for noncommercial purposes only. All other rights, including commercial rights, are reserved to the author.
[1] J. Moore and M. S. Holcomb, eds., Jane's American Fighting Ships of the 20th Century (Modern Publishing, 1995).
[2] "The Cost-Effectiveness of Nuclear Power for Navy Surface Ships," U. S. Congressional Budget Office, Pub. No. 4028, May 2011.
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