USS John C. Stennis (CVN 74): Ship profile

USS John C. Stennis (CVN-74) is the seventh Nimitz-class nuclear-powered supercarrier in the United States Navy whose home port is Bremerton, Washington. She was named for Senator John C. Stennis of Mississippi and commissioned on December 9, 1995.

USS John C. Stennis (CVN 74): PACIFIC OCEAN (March 11, 2009) The Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS John C. Stennis (CVN 74) pulls into Busan for a scheduled port visit. John C. Stennis is in Korea for a scheduled port visit. John C. Stennis is on a scheduled six-month deployment to the western Pacific Ocean. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Elliott Fabrizio/Released)

The mission of the USS Stennis and her embarked Air Wing (CVW-9) is to conduct sustained combat air operations while forward deployed in the global arena. The embarked Air Wing consists of eight to nine squadrons.

Attached aircraft are Navy and Marine F/A-18 Hornet, EA-6B Prowler, MH-60R, MH-60S, and E-2C Hawkeye that 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 can destroy enemy aircraft, ships, submarines, and land targets, or lay mines hundreds of miles from the ship and provides a visible presence to demonstrate American power and resolve in a crisis.

The USS Stennis normally operates as the centerpiece of the John C. Carrier Strike Group commanded by a flag officer embarked in USS John C. Stennis and consisting of four to six other ships. USS John C. Stennis' 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 John C. Stennis (CVN 74): ARABIAN SEA (May 15, 2007) - An MH-60S Seahawk assigned to the "Wild Cards" of Helicopter Sea Combat Squadron (HSC) 23 delivers supplies from the Military Sealift Command fast combat support ship USNS Bridge (T-AOE 10) to USS John C. Stennis (CVN 74) during a vertical replenishment. The John C. Stennis Carrier Strike Group was on a regularly scheduled deployment in support of Maritime Security Operations (MSO). MSO help set the conditions for security and stability, as well as aid counter-terrorism and security efforts to the regional nations. U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist Seaman Josue Leopoldo Escobosa (RELEASED)

The USS John C. Stennis also has extensive repair capabilities, including a fully equipped Aircraft Intermediate Maintenance Department, a micro-miniature electronics repair shop, and numerous ship repair shops. For defense, in addition to her Air Wing and accompanying vessels, USS John C. Stennis has NATO Sea Sparrow short-range, surface-to-air missile systems, Rolling Airframe missiles (RAM), the Phalanx Close-in Weapons System (an extremely rapid firing 20mm gun) for cruise missile defense, and the SLQ-32 Electronic Warfare System.

Stennis Facts and Figures:

Dimensions:

Length of flight deck: 1,092 ft
Width of flight deck: 257 ft
Height keel to mast: 244 ft (equal to 24-story building)
Area of flight deck: 4.5 acres
Weight of Carrier: 97,000 tons

Propulsion System:

Type: Nuclear reactor
Number of reactors: 2
Maximum speed: More than 30 knots
Number of screws: 4 (5 blades each)
Weight of screws: 66,200 lbs each

Flight Deck/Air Wing:

Number of catapults: 4
Number of aircraft elevators: 4
Size of Air Wing: 70+ tactical aircraft

Miscellaneous Information

Builder: Newport News Shipbuilding Co.
Sponsor: Mrs. Margaret Stennis Womble
Contract Date: March 29, 1988
Keel laid: March 13, 1991
Christened: November 11, 1993
Commissioned: December 9, 1995
Crew size: 5,000 (including air wing)
Meals served daily: 16,600
Number of compartments: 2,700
Number of anchors: 2 (From USS FORRESTAL (CV-59)
Weight of anchors: 30 tons each
A/C plant capacity: 2,900 tons (enough to service 950 homes)
Distillation plant capacity: 400,000 gals (enough to serve 2000 homes)
Number of telephones: 2,000
Tons of structural steel: More than 60,000 tons
Miles of cable and wiring: over 900
Number of light fixtures: more than 30,000
Required technical manuals: A stack as high as the Washington Monument (555 feet)
Bed mattresses: If lined up end-to-end, they would stretch more than nine miles.
Sheets: 28,000
Pillow Cases: 14,000
Cost: $3.5 billion; projected service life: 50 years

Additional Images from the USS John C. Stennis (CVN 74) Photo Gallery:

Sources: US Navy and some information from wikipedia.org