USS Carl Vinson

Also known as CVN-70

1980 Nimitz-class aircraft carrier

Key facts

Name: Carl Vinson
Namesake: Carl Vinson
Ordered: 5 April 1974
Builder: Newport News Shipbuilding
Laid down: 11 October 1975
Launched: 15 March 1980
Christened: 15 March 1980
Acquired: 26 February 1982
Commissioned: 13 March 1982
Home port: San Diego
Identification: MMSI number : 369970409 Callsign : NCVV Hull number : CVN-70
Motto: Vis Per Mare (Strength from the Sea)
Status

Article

USS Carl Vinson (CVN-70) is the United States Navy's third Nimitz-class supercarrier. She is named for Carl Vinson (1883–1981), a congressman from Georgia, in recognition of his contributions to the U.S. Navy. The ship was launched during Vinson's lifetime in 1980, undertook her maiden voyage in 1983, and underwent refueling and overhaul between 2005 and 2009. Carl Vinson is currently the flagship of Carrier Strike Group 1 with Carrier Air Wing Two serving as her air wing.

Along with deployments in Operation Desert Strike, Operation Iraqi Freedom, Operation Southern Watch, and Operation Enduring Freedom, Carl Vinson has been involved in a number of notable events. The body of Osama bin Laden was buried at sea in 2011 from the deck of Carl Vinson, and that same year, on Veterans Day, she played host to the first NCAA basketball game on an aircraft carrier, between North Carolina and Michigan State.