USS George Washington passing through the Straits of Gibraltar |
| Career |  |
|---|
| Laid down: | 25 August 1986 |
| Launched: | 21 July 1990 |
| Commissioned: | 4 July 1992 |
| Status: | Active in service as of 2005. |
| General Characteristics |
|---|
| Displacement: | 80,376 t (light), 104,017 t (full) |
| Length: | 1,092 ft (333 m) |
| Beam: | 134 ft (41 m) |
| Extreme Width: | 252 ft (77 m) |
| Draft: | 42 ft (13 m) |
| Speed: | 35 knots (56 km/h) |
| Complement: | 3,200 officers and crew |
| Armament: | 3 Mk.29 NATO Sea Sparrow launchers,
4 x 20 mm Phalanx CIWS Mk.15 |
| Aircraft: | 85 |
| Nickname: | GW |
USS George Washington (CVN 73) is the sixth ship in the Nimitz class of nuclear-powered supercarriers, and the third United States Navy warship to be named after George Washington, first President of the United States. She was built by Newport News Shipbuilding. The keel was laid on 25 August 1986 and the ship was commissioned on 4 July 1992.
Two nuclear reactors are used for propulsion (the ship is capable of steaming more than one million miles before refueling) turning 4 five-bladed screws that weigh 66,220 pounds (30 t) each driving the ship at speeds over 30 knots (56 km/h).
George Washington (commonly known as GW) is 1,094 ft (333 m) long, 257 ft (78 m) wide and is as high as a twenty-four story building, at 244 feet (74 m). The supercarrier can accommodate approximately 80 aircraft and has a flight deck 4.5 acres (18,000 m²) in size, using four elevators that are 3,880 ft² (360 m²) each to move planes between the flight deck and the hangar bay. With a combat load, GW displaces almost 97,000 tons and carries over 6,000 crew members. She can distill 400,000 U.S. gallons (1,500 m³) of water and serves 18,000 meals per day. There are over 2,500 compartments on board requiring 2,520 tons (2.1 MW) of air conditioning capacity (enough to cool over 2,000 homes). The warship uses two anchors that weigh 30 tons each, with each link of the anchor chain weighing 360 pounds (160 kg).
As of 2004, George Washington is homeported at NS Norfolk, Virginia.
See also USS George Washington (SSBN-598).
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