Forrestal-class aircraft carrier

Forrestal-class aircraft carrier
USS Forrestal, lead ship of her class of supercarriers
USS Forrestal
Class overview
NameForrestal class
Builders
Operators United States Navy
Preceded byUnited States (proposed) and Midway class (actual)
Succeeded byKitty Hawk class and Enterprise class
Built14 July 1952 – 6 June 1958
In commission1 October 1955 – 30 September 1998
Completed4
Scrapped4
General characteristics
TypeAircraft 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
Draft35 ft 9 in (10.90 m)
Propulsion
Speed34 knots (63 km/h)
Complement4,378
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.

  1. ^ Donald, David; Daniel J. March (2001). Carrier Aviation Air Power Directory. Norwalk, Connecticut: AIRtime Publishing. ISBN 1-880588-43-9.