Class of U.S. supercarriers
Forrestal-class aircraft carrier
USS Forrestal
|
Class overview |
Name | Forrestal class |
Builders | |
Operators | United States Navy |
Preceded by | United States (proposed) and Midway class (actual) |
Succeeded by | Kitty Hawk class and Enterprise class |
Built | 14 July 1952 – 6 June 1958 |
In commission | 1 October 1955 – 30 September 1998 |
Completed | 4 |
Scrapped | 4 |
General characteristics |
Type | Aircraft carrier |
Displacement |
- 60,000 long tons (61,000 t) light[1]
- 81,000 long tons (82,000 t) full load
|
Length |
- 1,069 ft 11 in (326.1 m) overall
- 989 ft 10 in (301.7 m) waterline
|
Beam |
- 238 ft (73 m) extreme width
- 129 ft 4 in (39.42 m) waterline
|
Draft | 35 ft 9 in (10.90 m) |
Propulsion | |
Speed | 34 knots (63 km/h) |
Complement | 4,378 |
Armament |
- Original armament:
- Refit armament:
|
Armor |
- Belt: 6 in (152 mm)
- Flight deck: 3 in (76 mm)
- Torpedo Bulkheads: 3 in (76 mm)
|
Aircraft carried |
- 1960:
- 24-28 Vought F-8 Crusaders or McDonnell F3H Demons
- 36 Douglas A-4 Skyhawks
- 10-12 Douglas A-3 Skywarriors
- Total: ~70 aircraft
- 1 squadron of Douglas AD-5W Skyraiders
- 1970:
- 24 McDonnell Douglas F-4 Phantom IIs or Vought F-8 Crusaders (the latter mainly used aboard the Essex-class carriers)
- 24 LTV A-7 Corsair IIs or Douglas A-4 Skyhawks
- 1 squadron of Grumman A-6A/B Intruders
- 4 North American RA-5C Vigilantes
- 4-6 Northrop Grumman E-2A Hawkeyes
- 1 squadron of Douglas EKA-3B Skywarriors
- 1 squadron of Sikorsky SH-3A Sea Kings or Kaman UH-2C Seasprites
- Total: ~90 aircraft
- 1 squadron of Vought RF-8G Crusaders
- 1 squadron of Douglas KA-3B Skywarriors
- 1981:
- 24 McDonnell Douglas F-4 Phantom IIs or Grumman F-14 Tomcats
- 24 LTV A-7 Corsair IIs
- 10-12 Grumman A-6E Intruders
- 4 Grumman KA-6D Intruders
- 4-6 Northrop Grumman E-2C Hawkeyes
- 4-6 Northrop Grumman EA-6B Prowlers
- 10 Lockheed S-3A Vikings
- 6 Sikorsky SH-3G/H Sea Kings
- Total: 86-92 aircraft
- 1 squadron of Douglas EA-3 Skywarriors
- 3 Vought RF-8G Crusaders
|
Aviation facilities |
- 326 m × 77 m (1,069 ft 7 in × 252 ft 7 in) flight deck
- 4 steam catapults
- 4 deck edge aircraft elevators
- 3 hangar decks
|
The Forrestal-class aircraft carriers were four aircraft carriers designed and built for the United States Navy in the 1950s. The class ship was named for James Forrestal, the first United States Secretary of Defense. It was the first class of supercarriers, combining high tonnage, deck-edge elevators and an angled deck. The first ship was commissioned in 1955, the last decommissioned in 1998. The four ships of the class were scrapped in Brownsville, Texas, between 2014 and 2017.
- ^ Donald, David; Daniel J. March (2001). Carrier Aviation Air Power Directory. Norwalk, Connecticut: AIRtime Publishing. ISBN 1-880588-43-9.