US Law requires a Minimum of 11 Aircraft Carriers

There are now 11 aircraft carriers in the US Navy's fleet, and they maintain a demanding schedule. The USS Nimitz has recently been on a 10-month deployment. The longest deployment personnel could anticipate in the past was six months, and this was typical of how things worked during the Cold War.

In the past, the US operated up to 15 aircraft carriers concurrently. In actuality, the US legislation only permits a minimum of 11, which are the ones that are now operational. There must be 11, although there are a few problems with that as well. The USS Gerald R. Ford, the fleet's most current carrier and a roughly $13 billion investment, isn't actually in service right now. It might not be operational until 2024. The remainder of the fleet is picking up the slack by having crews endure lengthy periods at sea.

There have been discussions about adding more carriers to the fleet to help lighten the load, especially since there are only 10 at the moment, but so far it appears that the crews out at sea on lengthy missions won't be getting any assistance.