Key Points and Summary – USS Enterprise (CVN-65) was the world’s first nuclear-powered carrier and a U.S. Navy icon. Commissioned in 1961, the “Big E” tracked John Glenn’s Friendship 7, enforced the Cuban Missile Crisis quarantine, and circumnavigated the globe without refueling.
-She led strikes in Vietnam, enforced no-fly zones over Iraq and the Balkans, and returned to combat after 9/11 before retiring in 2012.
USS Enterprise. Image Credit: Creative Commons.
-At 1,123 feet and 94,000+ tons, Enterprise boasted eight A2W reactors, 34-knot speed, a “triple-4” deck (4 cats, 4 elevators, 4 wires), SCANFAR phased-array radar, and a 90-aircraft air wing—setting the blueprint for the Nimitz class.
The Unforgettable Aircraft Carrier: US Navy’s Nuclear-Powered Enterprise
One cannot be a naval historian without telling the tale of the USS Enterprise (CVN-65). This is one unforgettable aircraft carrier. It was the first nuclear-powered flat-top in history with an excellent combat record to match. The “Big E” conducted some of the most interesting and diverse missions. It could circle the earth without refueling.
The Enterprise assisted with recovering astronauts after space flights and helped with the blockade of Soviet vessels during the Cuban Missile Crisis.
Making History From the Very Beginning
The Big E was one special ship. It was commissioned in 1961 at Newport News, Virginia, and impressed the world with its audacious size and presence. It was the time of the space race with the Soviet Union, and the Enterprise leaped into the spotlight. In 1962, astronaut John Glenn took flight in a spacecraft that orbited the Earth as part of the Friendship 7 mission. The Enterprise helped track Glenn’s spacecraft.
In 1962, the Enterprise played a significant role in history once again. President John F. Kennedy ordered naval vessels to blockade Cuba during the Cuban Missile Crisis. The Enterprise was ready to strike Soviet warships or to destroy nuclear targets in Cuba should the President decide to attack.
Another Way to Torment the Russians
In 1964, the Enterprise sent a message to the Soviet Union that it was the best aircraft carrier in the world. The mission was to circumnavigate the globe, and the Big E executed it with aplomb. With its nuclear power, the carrier did not require refueling, and it traveled for 65 days, completing a 30,565-mile voyage.
The USS Enterprise Led Naval Attacks During the Vietnam War
Next came a combat test during the Vietnam War. The Navy’s F-4 Phantoms and A-6 Intruders from the Enterprise were instrumental in taking out numerous Viet Cong and North Vietnamese targets. The Enterprise was relentless in executing carrier operations that sent many naval aviators on missions over Vietnam. This was one of the most electrifying performances for a US Navy ship during the war. The Enterprise even helped out during the Fall of Saigon in 1975, when it rescued Americans who were leaving Vietnam after the conflict ended.
The USS Enterprise received a reprieve from combat in the 1970s but still sailed in various hotspots around the globe, particularly in the Middle East and East Asia. It was also deployed to the Mediterranean Sea against Libya before a maintenance and refit.
The Big E was not immune to warfare thereafter. In the 1990s, its airplanes enforced no-fly zones over Iraq and the Balkans. The Enterprise was modernized in 2008, but it had already participated in the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq after 9/11. It was finally retired in 2012.
Standard Set for the Nimitz-Class
The Enterprise was the only ship of its class, but it paved the way for the Nimitz-class, which was one of the most successful groups of aircraft carriers in history.
(June 18, 2021) As seen from the Ticonderoga-class guided-missile cruiser USS Shiloh (CG 67), the Navy’s only forward-deployed aircraft carrier USS Ronald Reagan (CVN 76) transits the Strait of Malacca with the Arleigh Burke-class guided missile destroyer USS Halsey (DDG 97). The ships are part of Task Force 70/Carrier Strike Group 5, conducting underway operations in support of a free and open Indo-Pacific. (U.S. Navy Photo by Mass Communication Specialist 1st Class Rawad Madanat)
What Made USS Enterprise Great?
The Big E was 1,123 feet long, which made its flight deck the longest in use at the time. While it needed a high level of maintenance, it served for 50 years. The Enterprise displaced over 94,000 tons. It was 252 feet wide, and its deck space was 4.5 acres.
According to Naval-Technology.com, the Big E had a “Triple 4” design. That meant “four aircraft elevators, four steam-powered catapults, and four arresting wires. It could launch and recover aircraft simultaneously.”
In the modern era, the carrier deploys over 90 aircraft. This included four EA-6B Prowler electronic warfare aircraft, four E-2C Hawkeye command and control airplanes, five SH-60F Seahawk anti-submarine warfare helicopters, six S-3B Viking anti-submarine warfare aircraft, and 43 F/A-18 Hornet strike fighters.
It came equipped with Sea Sparrow surface-to-air missiles, Rolling Airframe Missiles, and the Phalanx Close-in Weapons System.
The Enterprise also used eight Westinghouse second-generation A2W nuclear reactors. The four Westinghouse steam turbines produced a total of 280,000 horsepower. The carrier’s top speed was a swift 34 knots.
No other U.S. aircraft carrier was as famous as the Enterprise. And for good reason. It was powerful and versatile, capable of much more than standard missions that emphasized aviation operations. The Navy could always depend on the Enterprise. It completed 25 deployments and was the first nuclear-powered ship to engage in combat in Vietnam.
The USS Enterprise set the standard for new carriers. It featured the first shipboard phased-array radar, called SCANFAR, along with SPS-32 and SPS-33 search radars. The carrier eventually had a modern airwing and carried four squadrons of F/A-18E/F Super Hornets.
If I could go back in history and pick one carrier to serve on, it would have been the Enterprise. Fifty years of service is amazing for any ship. It made history during the space race, the Vietnam War, and continued into the Global War on Terror. The original designers of the Enterprise would never have predicted that it would someday fly the Super Hornet.
The exploits of USS Enterprise should be studied at the U.S. Naval Academy and the Naval War College, so aspiring junior officers and admirals can learn from such an iconic vessel that defined the naval experience for over five decades. No carrier can match it for efficiency and stamina. The Enterprise was a difference maker during many different conflicts, and it set the standard for dependability and staying power. Whoever served on the Enterprise can say they were part of naval lore.
About the Author: Brent M. Eastwood
Brent M. Eastwood, PhD is the author of Don’t Turn Your Back On the World: a Conservative Foreign Policy and Humans, Machines, and Data: Future Trends in Warfare plus two other books. Brent was the founder and CEO of a tech firm that predicted world events using artificial intelligence. He served as a legislative fellow for US Senator Tim Scott and advised the senator on defense and foreign policy issues. He has taught at American University, George Washington University, and George Mason University. Brent is a former US Army Infantry officer. He can be followed on X @BMEastwood.
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