View source for USS Enterprise (CVN-65)

{{Short description|Decommissioned United States Navy aircraft carrier}}
{{Other ships|USS Enterprise (disambiguation){{!}}USS ''Enterprise''}}
{{Use American English|date=February 2019}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=January 2016}}
{|{{Infobox ship begin
| infobox caption = yes
}}
{{Infobox ship image
| Ship image = USS_Enterprise_(CVN-65).jpg
| Ship caption = USS ''Enterprise'' underway in the Atlantic Ocean
}}
{{Infobox ship class overview
| Name = ''Enterprise''-class [[aircraft carrier]]
| Builders = [[Newport News Shipbuilding]]
| Operators = {{naval|United States}}
| Class before = {{sclass|Kitty Hawk|aircraft carrier|4}}
| Class after = {{sclass|Nimitz|aircraft carrier|4}}
| Subclasses = 
| Cost = 
| Built range = 1958–1961
| In service range = *1961–2012 (active)
*2012–2017 (inactive)
| Total ships building = 
| Total ships = 1
| Total ships planned = 6
| Total ships cancelled = 5
| Total ships completed = 1
| Total ships active = 
| Total ships lost = 
| Total ships retired = 1
| Total ships preserved = 
}}
{{Infobox ship career
| Hide header = 
| Ship country = United States
| Ship flag = {{USN flag}}
| Ship name = ''Enterprise''
| Ship namesake = {{USS|Enterprise|CV-6}}
| Ship ordered = 15 November 1957
| Ship builder = [[Newport News Shipbuilding|Newport News Shipbuilding and Drydock Company]]
| Ship original cost = $451.3&nbsp;million<ref>{{Citation | title = Jane's American fighting ships of the 20th century | place = New York | publisher = Mallard Press | year = 1991 | isbn = 0-7924-5626-2}}</ref>
| Ship laid down = 4 February 1958
| Ship launched = 24 September 1960
| Ship christened = 24 September 1960<!-- ''Enterprise'' was christened and launched on the same day. -->
| Ship acquired = 29 October 1961
| Ship commissioned = 25 November 1961
| Ship deactivation = 1 December 2012
| Ship decommissioned = 3 February 2017
| Ship in service = 12 January 1962
| Ship refit = 27 September 1994
| Ship reclassified = CVN-65 from CVA(N)-65
| Ship out of service = 1 December 2012
| Ship struck = 3 February 2017
| Ship honors = 
| Ship status = Awaiting recycling at HII Shipyard, Newport News, Virginia
| Ship motto = * ''We are Legend;''
* ''Ready on Arrival;''
* ''The First, the Finest;''
* ''Eight Reactors, None Faster''
| Ship nickname = Big E<ref>{{Citation | url = http://www.public.navy.mil/airfor/enterprise/Documents/Enterprise/the_legend.html | title = USS ''Enterprise'': The Legend | place = US | publisher = Navy | url-status = dead | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20130301095522/http://www.public.navy.mil/airfor/enterprise/Documents/Enterprise/the_legend.html | archive-date = 1 March 2013 | df = dmy-all }}</ref>
| Ship badge or crest = [[File:USS Enterprise Logo.jpg|200px]]
| Ship badge = [[File:USS Enterprise (CVN-65) coat of arms.png|150px|center|alt=Crest of USS ''Enterprise'']]
| Ship notes = 
}}
{{Infobox ship characteristics
| Hide header = 
| Header caption = 
| Ship class = ''Enterprise''-class aircraft carrier
| Ship displacement = {{Convert|93284|LT|MT|adj=on}} full load<ref name="NVR">{{Citation | place = US | url = https://www.nvr.navy.mil/SHIPDETAILS/SHIPSDETAIL_CVN_65.HTML | title = Naval Vessel Register - ''Enterprise'' (CVN-65) | publisher = Navy}}</ref>
| Ship length = *{{cvt|1123|ft}} (after refit)<ref name="length">{{Cite web |last1=King |first1=Jared M.  |last2=USS ''Enterprise'' Public Affairs |date=2010-12-01 |title=Navy's second oldest commissioned ship turns 49 |url=https://www.militarynews.com/norfolk-navy-flagship/news/from_the_fleet/navy-s-second-oldest-commissioned-ship-turns-49/article_f06345fc-446e-5846-b2e0-2959176b1e37.html |access-date=2022-07-07 |website=Military News |language=en}}</ref><ref name="length2">{{Citation | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20110723091307/http://www.military-today.com/navy/enterprise.htm | archive-date = 23 July 2011 | url = http://www.military-today.com/navy/enterprise.htm |title=USS ''Enterprise'' Nuclear-powered aircraft carrier |work=Military today}}</ref>
*{{cvt|1088|ft}} (original)<ref name="NVR"/>
| Ship beam = *{{cvt|132.8|ft}} (waterline)
* {{cvt|257.2|ft}} (extreme)
| Ship draft = {{cvt|39|ft}}
| Ship propulsion = *8 × [[Westinghouse Electric Company|Westinghouse]] [[A2W reactor|A2W nuclear reactors]]
*4 x Westinghouse geared steam turbines
*4 × shafts
*{{cvt|280000|shp|MW|lk=in}}
| Ship speed = {{cvt|33.6|kn|mph kph|lk=in}}<ref>{{cite web|url=http://navylive.dodlive.mil/2015/04/12/evolution-of-the-aircraft-carrier/|title=Evolution of the Aircraft Carrier|publisher=navylive.dodlive.mil|date=12 April 2015|access-date=29 August 2018}}</ref>
| Ship range = {{Nuclear ship range}}
| Ship complement = *5,828 (maximum)
* Ship's company: 3,000 (2,700 Sailors, 150 Chiefs, 150 Officers)
* Air wing: 1,800 (250 pilots, and 1,550 support personnel)
| Ship sensors = *[[AN/SPS-48]] 3D air search radar
* [[AN/SPS-49]] 2D air search radar
* [[MK-23 Target Acquisition System]] Fire Control Radar
| Ship EW = *[[AN/SLQ-32 Electronic Warfare Suite]]
* [[Mark 36 SRBOC]]
| Ship armament = *3 × [[RIM-7 Sea Sparrow|NATO Sea Sparrow]] launchers<ref name= "entdef">{{cite web|url=https://www.naval-technology.com/projects/uss-enterprise/|title= USS ''Enterprise''|publisher=naval-technology.com|access-date=3 April 2018}}</ref>
* 3 × 20 mm [[Phalanx CIWS]] mounts<ref name= entdef/>
* 2 [[RIM-116 Rolling Airframe Missile|RAM]] launchers
| Ship armor = {{cvt|8|in|cm}} aluminum belt (equivalent to {{cvt|4|in|cm}} rolled homogeneous steel armor), armored flight deck, hangar, magazines and reactor<ref>Cracknell, p. 56: "The main armor carried on ''Enterprise'' is the heavy armoured flight deck. This was to prove a significant factor in the [[USS Enterprise fire|catastrophic fire and explosions]] that occurred on Enterprise's flight deck in 1969. The US Navy learned its lesson the hard way during World War II when all its carriers had only armoured hangar decks. All attack carriers built since the ''Midway'' class have had armored flight decks."</ref><ref>{{Citation | title = Haze gray | url = http://www.hazegray.org/navhist/carriers/us_super.htm#cvan65 | contribution = ''Enterprise'' class nuclear powered attack aircraft carriers}}</ref>
| Ship aircraft facilities = Flight deck: {{cvt|1123|ft}}
| Ship aircraft = *Hold up to 90
* 60+ (normally)<ref name=Facts_Stats>{{Citation | url = http://www.public.navy.mil/airfor/enterprise/Documents/Enterprise/facts_and_stats.html | title = ''Enterprise'' | contribution = Facts & Stats | place = US | publisher = Navy | access-date = 13 April 2012 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20120502110353/http://www.public.navy.mil/airfor/enterprise/Documents/Enterprise/facts_and_stats.html | archive-date = 2 May 2012 | url-status = dead | df = dmy-all }}</ref>
| Ship notes = Equipped with 4 steam-powered catapults.<ref name="janes2000-p798"/>}}
|}
{{Coord|36.9805|-76.4384|display=title}}
'''USS ''Enterprise'' (CVN-65)''', formerly '''CVA(N)-65''', is a decommissioned<ref>{{Naval Vessel Register URL|id=CVN65}}</ref> [[United States Navy]] [[aircraft carrier]]. In 1958, she became the first [[Nuclear marine propulsion|nuclear-powered]] aircraft carrier in the United States Navy, and the eighth United States naval vessel to bear [[List of ships of the United States Navy named Enterprise|the name]]. Like [[USS Enterprise (CV-6)|her predecessor]] of [[World War II]] fame, she is nicknamed "Big E". At {{convert|1123|ft}},<ref name="length"/><ref name="length2"/> she is the [[List of longest naval ships|longest naval vessel]] ever built and the only ship of a class that was originally planned to have five other ships. Her {{cvt|93284|LT|adj=on|lk=on}}<ref name="NVR"/> displacement ranks her class as the third largest carrier class, after the {{sclass|Nimitz|aircraft carrier|4}} and the [[Gerald R. Ford-class aircraft carrier|''Gerald R. Ford'' class]]. ''Enterprise'' had a crew of some 4,600 service members.<ref name=Facts_Stats/>

''Enterprise''<ref>{{cite web |last=US Navy |title=Welcome to Navy Forces Online Public Sites |url=http://www.enterprise.navy.mil/ |access-date=18 July 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130727085036/http://www.enterprise.navy.mil/ |archive-date=27 July 2013 |df=dmy }}</ref> was, at the time of inactivation, the third-oldest [[Ship commissioning|commissioned]] vessel in the United States Navy after the wooden-[[hull (watercraft)|hulled]] {{USS|Constitution}} and {{USS|Pueblo|AGER-2|6}}.<ref name="retire2">{{Citation | archive-date = 17 July 2011 | url = http://www.defpro.com/news/details/10424/ | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20110717062752/http://www.defpro.com/news/details/10424/ | title = House and Senate Armed Services Committees agree FY 2010 Navy shipbuilding authorization | publisher = Defpro | date = 10 October 2009}}</ref> She was inactivated on 1 December 2012,<ref>{{cite web |url= http://www.public.navy.mil/bupers-npc/reference/messages/Documents/NAVADMINS/NAV2012/NAV12087.txt |title=FY13 Projected Ship Inactivation Schedule |work=[[Bureau of Naval Personnel]] |date=March 2012 |access-date=13 October 2014}}</ref> and officially decommissioned on 3 February 2017,<ref name="Decommissioning">{{cite web|url=http://pilotonline.com/news/military/local/navy-to-give-final-farewell-to-aircraft-carrier-uss-enterprise/article_7e3e201c-8c2c-5c5b-b474-b4718cd0bdd4.html|title=Navy to give final farewell to aircraft carrier USS ''Enterprise''|first=Brock|last=Vergakis|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170125181956/http://pilotonline.com/news/military/local/navy-to-give-final-farewell-to-aircraft-carrier-uss-enterprise/article_7e3e201c-8c2c-5c5b-b474-b4718cd0bdd4.html|archive-date=25 January 2017}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|author=Brad Lendon |url=http://www.cnn.com/2014/10/03/us/navy-carrier-anchor/index.html?hpt=hp_t2 |title=Carrier turns donor: USS ''Enterprise'' gives anchor to USS ''Lincoln'' |publisher=CNN.com |access-date=3 October 2014}}</ref> after over 55 years of service.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.public.navy.mil/airfor/Enterprise/Documents/Enterprise/the_legend.html |title=USS ''Enterprise'' (CVN 65) Official Web Site |publisher=Public.navy.mil |access-date=20 April 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130301095522/http://www.public.navy.mil/airfor/enterprise/Documents/Enterprise/the_legend.html |archive-date=1 March 2013 |df=dmy-all }}</ref><ref name="10March12">[https://www.foxnews.com/us/worlds-first-nuclear-powered-aircraft-carrier-the-big-e-makes-final-voyage/ "World's First Nuclear-powered Aircraft Carrier, the Big E, makes final voyage"]. foxnews.com, 10 March 2012.</ref> She was stricken from the ''[[Naval Vessel Register]]'' the same day.<ref>{{Naval Vessel Register|http://www.nvr.navy.mil/SHIPDETAILS/SHIPSDETAIL_CVN_65_5150.HTML}}</ref> The name has been adopted by the future ''Gerald R. Ford''-class aircraft carrier: {{USS|Enterprise|CVN-80}}.<ref name="CVN80">{{Citation| date = 1 December 2012 | url = http://www.facebook.com/USS.Enterprise.CVN.65 | publisher = Navy | title = USS ''Enterprise'' (CVN-65) – Official Facebook Page | access-date = 1 December 2012}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|author=USS ''Enterprise'' Public Affairs |url=http://www.navy.mil/submit/display.asp?story_id=70899 |title=''Enterprise'', Navy's First Nuclear-Powered Aircraft Carrier, Inactivated |publisher=Navy.mil |access-date=8 December 2012}}</ref>

==Design==

Designed under project [[Ship Characteristics Board|SCB 160]],<ref name="friedp313">{{harvnb|Friedman|1983|p=313}}</ref> USS ''Enterprise'' was intended as the lead ship of a new class of six nuclear powered aircraft carriers, but massive increases in construction costs led to the remaining vessels being cancelled.

''Enterprise'' is the only aircraft carrier to house more than two nuclear reactors,<ref name="length"/> having an eight-reactor propulsion design, with each [[A2W reactor]] taking the place of one of the conventional boilers in earlier constructions.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.navweaps.com/index_tech/tech-028.htm |title=Speed Thrills III&nbsp;– Max speed of nuclear-powered aircraft carriers |publisher=Navweaps.com |date=29 April 1999 |access-date=20 April 2013}}</ref> She is the only carrier with four rudders, two more than other classes, and features a more [[cruiser]]-like hull.<ref>{{cite web |last=Weber |first=Bill |date=20 June 2007 |title=The First and the Finest: Aboard the USS Enterprise |url=http://www.nascar.com/2007/news/opinion/06/20/bweber.cedwards.uss.enterprise/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110628223157/http://www.nascar.com/2007/news/opinion/06/20/bweber.cedwards.uss.enterprise/ |archive-date=28 June 2011 |access-date=14 July 2007 |website=NASCAR.com}}</ref>

===Armament===
Because of the huge cost of her construction, ''Enterprise'' was launched and commissioned without the planned [[RIM-2 Terrier]] missile launchers.<ref>''Jane's American fighting ships of the 20th century'', p. 89. New York: Mallard Press, 1991. {{ISBN|0-7924-5626-2}}.</ref> Initially, the carrier had little defensive armament.<ref name="friedp313"/><ref name="conwaysp572">{{harvnb|Gardiner|Chumbley|1995|p=572}}</ref>{{#tag:ref|Four 20 mm cannon were carried according to Friedman,<ref name="friedp313"/> while two 3-inch saluting guns were carried according to Cracknell.<ref name="profp56">{{harvnb|Cracknell|1972|p=56}}</ref>|group=lower-alpha}} Late in 1967, ''Enterprise'' was fitted with a prototype Basic Point Defense Missile System (BPDMS) installation, with two eight-round box launchers for Sea Sparrow missiles.<ref name="friedp313"/><ref name="polmarp53">{{harvnb|Polmar|1981|p=53}}</ref> A third BPDMS launcher was fitted during the ship's refit in 1970–1971.<ref name="jfsp437">{{harvnb|Blackman|1971|p=437}}</ref>

Later upgrades added two NATO Sea Sparrow (NSSM) and three Mk 15 [[Phalanx CIWS]] gun mounts.<ref>Cullen, Tony. ''Encyclopedia of World Sea Power'', p. 68. {{ISBN|0-517-65342-7}}.</ref> One CIWS mount was later removed and two 21-cell [[RIM-116 Rolling Airframe Missile]] launchers were added.<ref>{{Citation | type = image | format = [[JPEG]] | publisher = OSD | place = US | url = http://www.dodmedia.osd.mil/JCCC/Still/2006/Navy/061031-N-0119G-115.JPEG | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20110721161843/http://www.dodmedia.osd.mil/JCCC/Still/2006/Navy/061031-N-0119G-115.JPEG | archive-date = 21 July 2011 | title = 061031-N-0119G-115 Stbd side, RAM aft}}</ref><ref>{{Citation|type=image |format=[[JPEG]] |url=http://www.dodmedia.osd.mil/Assets/Still/2007/Navy/DN-SD-07-21656.JPEG|publisher=OSD |place=US |title=Forward Port side, RAM launcher |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080807231659/http://www.dodmedia.osd.mil/Assets/Still/2007/Navy/DN-SD-07-21656.JPEG |archive-date=7 August 2008 }}.</ref>

===Radar===
''Enterprise'' had a [[phased array]] radar system known as [[SCANFAR]]. SCANFAR was intended to be better at tracking multiple airborne targets than conventional rotating antenna radars. SCANFAR consisted of two radars, the AN/SPS-32 and the AN/SPS-33. The AN/SPS-32 was a long-range air search and target acquisition radar developed by [[Hughes Aircraft Company|Hughes]] for the US Navy. The AN/SPS-32 operated together with the AN/SPS-33, which was the square array used for 3D tracking, into one system. It was installed on only two vessels, ''Enterprise'' and the cruiser {{USS|Long Beach|CGN-9|6}}, placing an unacceptable power drain on the electric systems of both ships.{{Citation_needed|date=August 2019}}

The technology of the AN/SPS-32 was based on [[Vacuum tube|vacuum tubes]] and the system required constant repairs. The SPS-32 was a phased array radar which had a range of 400 nautical miles against large targets, and 200 nautical miles against small, fighter-size targets.<ref>{{cite web |author=Thor |url=http://science-naturalphenomena.blogspot.com/2011/01/ansps-32.html |title=Science, Natural Phenomena & Medicine: AN/SPS-32 |publisher=Science-naturalphenomena.blogspot.com |date=15 January 2011 |access-date=20 April 2013 |archive-date=20 February 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200220115309/https://science-naturalphenomena.blogspot.com/2011/01/ansps-32.html |url-status=dead }}</ref> These early phased arrays, replaced around 1980, were responsible for the distinctive square-looking island.<ref name="janes2000-p798">{{cite book |title=Jane's Fighting Ships 2000–2001 |publisher=Jane's Information Group |year=2000 |isbn=0-7106-2018-7 |editor=Sharpe |editor-first=Richard |location=Coulsdon, Surrey, UK |page=798}}</ref>

The AN/SPS-32 and AN/SPS-33 radars, while ahead of their time, suffered from issues relating to the electrical beam steering mechanism and were not pursued in further ship classes. While they are considered to be an early form of "phased array" radar, it would take the later technology of the Aegis phased array AN/SPY-1 with its electronically controlled beam steering to make phased array radars both reliable and practical for the USN.<ref>{{Cite web |author=Dreadnaughtz (username) |date=December 25, 2022 |title=USS Enterprise(1960) |url=https://naval-encyclopedia.com/cold-war/us/uss-enterprise-1960.php |access-date=October 9, 2023 |website=Naval Encyclopedia}}</ref> The dome above the SCANFAR contained the unique electronic warfare suite, the Andrew Alford AA-8200 dipole antennas (which never acquired a military designation). The system consisted of six rows of antennae encircling the dome. The antennas in the upper two rows were encased in piping [[Radome|radomes]] as they were small and fragile.

==History==

===Commissioning and trials===
The ship's [[Keel laying|keel was laid]] at [[Newport News Shipbuilding|Newport News Shipbuilding and Drydock Company]] in Shipway 11 on 4 February 1958. On 24 September 1960, the ship was [[Ceremonial ship launching|launched]], [[ship sponsor|sponsored]] by the wife of [[William B. Franke]], then [[United States Secretary of the Navy|Secretary of the Navy]]. On 25 November 1961, ''Enterprise'' was officially commissioned, with [[Captain (United States O-6)|Captain]] [[Vincent P. de Poix]], formerly of Fighting Squadron 6 on [[USS Enterprise (CV-6)|her predecessor]],<ref>Battle 360, "The Empire's Last Stand." Dir. Tony Long. History Channel. 2 May 2008 (2 May 2008)</ref> in command. On 12 January 1962, the ship made her maiden voyage starting an extensive shakedown cruise and a lengthy series of tests and training exercises designed to determine the full capabilities of the [[nuclear power]]ed super carrier.<ref name="profp59">{{Harvnb|Cracknell|1972|p=59}}</ref> A full-speed run with her escort, {{USS|Laffey|DD-724}}, demonstrated the sheer power and speed of ''Enterprise''{{'}}s novel nuclear propulsion plant; afterwards, ''Laffey'' radioed, "You win the race. Fuel gone, topside salted, crew wet, and engines tired."<ref>{{YouTube|rnHCts1mWYs|t=28m21s}} Navy Decommissions "The Big E"</ref> On 20 February 1962, ''Enterprise'' was a tracking and measuring station for the flight of [[Mercury-Atlas 6|''Friendship 7'']], the [[Project Mercury]] space capsule in which Lieutenant Colonel [[John Glenn|John H. Glenn Jr.]] made the first American orbital spaceflight.<ref name=danfs61/> ''Enterprise'' completed shakedown activities at [[Naval Station Norfolk]] on 5 April 1962.<ref name="profp59"/>
{| style="margin:auto"
| [[File:330-PSA-224-60 (USN 710802) (21305680371).jpg|thumb|left| Christening at Newport News shipyard in 1960]]
| [[File:USS Enterprise, Shake Down Cruise, Feb 10, 1962.jpg|thumb|upright=1.5|{{center|USS ''Enterprise'', official postmark and cachet<br>mailed during [[Guantanamo Bay Naval Base|Guantanamo (GITMO)]] Shake Down Cruise<br> 10 February 1962}}]]
|}
{{clear}}

===1960s===
On 25 June 1962, ''Enterprise'' joined the [[United States Second Fleet|2nd Fleet]] on her initial operational deployment, carrying out training off the US East Coast, and took part in Exercise ''LantFlex 2-62'', a nuclear strike exercise, in conjunction with the carrier {{USS|Forrestal|CV-59|2}} from 6–12 July.<ref name="profp60">{{Harvnb|Cracknell|1972|p=60}}</ref><ref name=danfs61/> In August, the carrier joined the [[United States Sixth Fleet|6th Fleet]] in the Mediterranean Sea, returning to [[Norfolk, Virginia]] on 11 October 1962.<ref name="profp60"/>

====1962 Cuban Missile Crisis====
{{Main article|Cuban Missile Crisis}}

In October 1962, ''Enterprise'' was dispatched to her first international crisis. Following revelations that the Soviet Union was constructing [[Nuclear weapons delivery|nuclear missile]] launch sites on Cuba, President [[John F. Kennedy]] ordered the [[United States Department of Defense]] to conduct a large-scale buildup. Among the preparations, the US [[United States Fleet Forces Command|Atlantic Fleet]] readied large numbers of its ships. On 22 October, President Kennedy ordered a naval and air "quarantine" (blockade) on shipment of offensive military equipment to Cuba and demanded the [[Soviet Union|Soviets]] dismantle the missile sites there. Five Second Fleet carriers participated in the blockade—''Enterprise'' (as part of Task Force 135), {{USS|Independence|CV-62|2}}, {{USS|Essex|CV-9|2}}, {{USS|Lake Champlain|CV-39|2}}, and {{USS|Randolph|CV-15|2}}, backed by shore-based aircraft. By 28 October, the crisis was both peacefully and successfully averted, after the United States secretly agreed to remove nuclear missiles from Italy and Turkey.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Clift |first=A. Denis |date=October 2022 |title=Task Force 135 On Course for Cuba |url=https://www.usni.org/magazines/proceedings/2022/october/task-force-135-course-cuba |access-date=October 9, 2023 |website=US Naval institute}}</ref>

====Second and third deployments====
{| style="margin:auto"
| [[File:USS Enterprise (CVAN-65) christening at Neport News SB 1960.jpg|thumb|left|''Enterprise'' is christened at Newport News shipyard in 1960.]]
| [[File:Sea Vixens on USS Enterprise 1962.jpg|thumb|[[de Havilland Sea Vixen|Sea Vixens]] of [[893 Naval Air Squadron|893 NAS]] operating from ''Enterprise'' in 1962.]]
| [[File:USSEnterpriseIsland67 (4409751346).jpg|thumb|''Enterprise'' in 1967, showing the ship's [[SCANFAR]] antennas]]
| [[File:TaskForce One.jpg|thumb|left|[[Task Force 1]], the first nuclear-powered task force. ''Enterprise'', {{USS|Long Beach|CGN-9|2}} and {{USS|Bainbridge|CGN-25|2}} in formation in the Mediterranean, 18 June 1964. ''Enterprise'' has [[Albert Einstein|Einstein's]] [[mass–energy equivalence]] formula ''E''=''mc''² spelled out on its flight deck. Note the distinctive [[phased array]] radars in the superstructures of ''Enterprise'' and ''Long Beach''.]]
|}

On 19 December 1962, a [[Northrop Grumman E-2 Hawkeye|Grumman E-2 Hawkeye]] was [[aircraft catapult|catapulted]] off ''Enterprise'' in the first shipboard test of a nose-wheel launch bar designed to replace the catapult bridle.<ref>{{cite web|format=The Sixth Decade|title=United States Naval Aviation 1910–1995|url=http://www.history.navy.mil/branches/org4-5.htm|page=250|website=[[Naval History & Heritage Command]]|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130802095914/http://www.history.navy.mil/branches/org4-5.htm|archive-date=2 August 2013|url-status=dead|df=dmy-all}}</ref> Minutes later, a second launch with a launch bar was made by a [[Grumman A-6 Intruder|Grumman A-6A Intruder]], demonstrating one of the primary design goals of reducing launch intervals.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://digilander.libero.it/shinano/USA/Enterprise2/history.htm |title=Portaerei Enterprise CVN 65 Storia |publisher=Digilander.libero.it |access-date=20 April 2013}}</ref>

In 1963–1964, now under command of Captain [[Frederick H. Michaelis]], ''Enterprise'' made her second and third [[military deployment|deployments]] to the Mediterranean. During her third deployment, the carrier was part of [[Operation Sea Orbit]], the world's first nuclear-powered task force with the cruisers ''Long Beach'' and {{USS|Bainbridge|CGN-25|2}}, together forming a convoy to sail around the world. On 25 February 1964, a crewman of the Finnish merchant ship {{SS|Verna Paulin||2}} was injured in a fall while the ship was in the vicinity of [[Souda Bay]], Greece. ''Enterprise'' answered her call for assistance. A surgeon was transferred to ''Verna Paulin'' by helicopter.<ref name=danfs61>{{cite DANFS|title=Enterprise VIII (CVAN-65): 1961-1965 |url=https://www.history.navy.mil/research/histories/ship-histories/danfs/e/enterprise-cvan-65-viii-1961-1965.html |access-date=13 January 2017}}</ref> In October 1964, ''Enterprise'' returned to Newport News Shipbuilding and Dry Dock Company for her first [[Refueling and Overhaul]]. During this refit, her eight nuclear reactors, which had powered ''Enterprise'' as she steamed over {{cvt|200000|nmi|mi km}}, were refueled, two of her propeller shafts were replaced, and the ship's electronics were updated. ''Enterprise'' emerged from her refit on 22 June 1965 and returned to action.<ref name="profp65">{{Harvnb|Cracknell|1972|p=65}}</ref>

====Vietnam deployments====
In November 1965, the Enterprise was transferred to the [[United States Seventh Fleet|Seventh Fleet]], home-ported at [[Naval Air Station Alameda|NAS Alameda]], California. The following month, on 2 December, she became the first nuclear-powered ship to engage in combat when she launched aircraft against the [[Viet Cong]] near [[Biên Hòa City]]. The ship led [[Carrier Strike Group Three|Carrier Division Three]], with ''Enterprise'' (redesignated '''CVA(N)-65'''), which had [[Carrier Air Wing Nine]] (CVW-9) aboard, ''Bainbridge''; {{USS|Barry|DD-933|2}}; and {{USS|Samuel B. Roberts|DD-823|2}}. ''Enterprise'' launched 125 [[sortie]]s on the first day, unleashing {{cvt|167|ST|t}} of bombs and rockets on the enemy's supply lines. On 3 December, she set a record of 165 strike sorties in a single day.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Holloway |first=James III |date=2007 |title=Week of December 3 |url=https://www.vietnamwar50th.com/education/week_of_december_3/ |access-date=10 October 2023 |website=The United states of America, Vietnam War Commemoration}}</ref>

In January 1966, the aircraft carrier was continuing operations as a unit of [[Task Force 77 (United States Navy)|Task Force 77]] in the [[Gulf of Tonkin]], as the flagship of Rear Admiral Henry L. Miller, Commander Carrier Division Three.<ref name = "History">{{Citation | contribution = ''Enterprise'' Command History | year = 1966 | title = History | publisher = U.S. Navy | at = 1–2}}</ref> Under the command of Captain [[James L. Holloway III]], she was carrying a complement of approximately 350 officers and 4,800 men. Four West coast squadrons of CVW-9, commanded by Commander F.&nbsp;T. Brown, were embarked; [[VF-92 (1952–75)|VF-92]], under Commander E.&nbsp;A. Rawsthorne, and [[VF-96]], under Commander R.&nbsp;D. Norman, flying [[McDonnell Douglas F-4 Phantom II|F-4B Phantom II]]s; [[VA-93 (U.S. Navy)|VA-93]] under Commander A.&nbsp;J. Monger, and [[VFA-94|VA-94]], under Commander O.&nbsp;E. Krueger, flying [[Douglas A-4 Skyhawk|A-4C Skyhawk]]s. With these squadrons were three others based on the East Coast; [[VA-36 (U.S. Navy)|VA-36]], under Commander J.&nbsp;E. Marshall, [[VA-76 (U.S. Navy)|VA-76]], under Commander J.&nbsp;B. Linder, flying A-4C Skyhawks; and [[RVAH-7]], under Commander K. Enny, flying [[North American A-5 Vigilante|RA-5C Vigilante]]s. Rear Admiral Miller was relieved as Commander Carrier Division Three by Rear Admiral T.&nbsp;J. Walker on 16 February 1966. During the change of command ceremony on the [[flight deck]], Rear Admiral Miller praised the ship's performance in his farewell remarks and presented air medals to more than 100 pilots and flight officers.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Cagle |first=Malcom W.  |date=May 1972 |title=Task force 77 in action off Vietnam |url=https://www.usni.org/magazines/proceedings/1972/may/task-force-77-action-vietnam |access-date=10 October 2023 |website=US Naval institute}}</ref>

The ship tied up at Leyte Pier, [[U.S. Naval Base Subic Bay]], on the evening of 8 December 1966.<ref name = "History"/> Loading of supplies for the first line period was started immediately. Rear Admiral Walter L Curtis Jr, Commander [[Carrier strike group|Carrier Division Nine]], brought his flag aboard. In company with {{USS|Manley|DD-940|2}}, {{USS|Gridley|DLG-21|2}} and {{USS|Bainbridge|DLGN-25|2}}, ''Enterprise'' sailed for Yankee Station on 15 December, and took up her position there three days later.{{Citation_needed|date=August 2019}}

When ''Enterprise'' departed the Gulf of Tonkin on 20 June 1967, her pilots had flown more than 13,400 battle missions during 132 combat days of operations. (Enterprise Command History 1967, 29) As Vice Admiral Hyland stated in his congratulatory statement, "the entire Air Wing Nine has earned a resounding 'Well Done'." The carrier had steamed 67,630 miles in operations with the Seventh Fleet. She arrived in Subic Bay on 22 June and departed on 25 June for return to Alameda on 6 July 1967.{{Citation_needed|date=August 2019}}

[[File:Aircraft burning on USS Enterprise (CVN-65).jpg|thumb|left|Sailors aboard ''Enterprise'' battle a huge ordnance fire triggered by a Zuni rocket. 14 January 1969]]
At Alameda, ''Enterprise'' began an overhaul. Captain [[Kent Lee]] relieved Captain James L. Holloway as commanding officer in ceremonies on 11 July 1967. Shipyard work was completed on 5 September 1967, and after completing sea trials on 7 September, ''Enterprise'' steamed south from San Francisco Bay to San Diego to reembark CVW-9 and get underway for refresher training off the California coast.{{Citation_needed|date=August 2019}}

''Enterprise'' was visiting Sasebo, Japan in January 1968 when the US intelligence ship {{USS|Pueblo|AGER-2|6}} was seized by North Korea, and she served as flagship of TF 71 (Rear Admiral Epes), which had been formed in response and they operated near [[South Korea]]n waters for almost a month, during [[Operation Formation Star]]. When diplomatic negotiations had defused tensions, ''Enterprise'' and her escorts were released to head south to Yankee Station on 16 February 1968. ''Enterprise'' returned to NAS Alameda on 18 July 1968, having completed 12,839 catapult launches, with 12,246 sorties{{snd}}9,182 of them combat. After a short overhaul in Puget Sound Naval Shipyard from 29 July to 26 September, she returned to Alameda to prepare for another deployment to Vietnam.{{Citation_needed|date=August 2019}}

===1969 fire===
{{Main article|USS Enterprise fire}}
[[File:USS Rogers (DD-876) alongside burning USS Enterprise (CVN-65).jpg|thumb|Sailors from the destroyer {{USS|Rogers|DD-876|2}} use their on-board hoses to assist with the firefighting efforts aboard ''Enterprise''.]]
During the morning of 14 January 1969, while being escorted by the destroyers {{USS|Benjamin Stoddert|DDG-22|2}} and {{USS|Rogers|DD-876|2}}, a [[Zuni (rocket)|MK-32 Zuni]] rocket loaded on a parked F-4 Phantom exploded when ordnance [[Cooking off|cooked off]] after being overheated by an aircraft start unit.<ref>{{Citation| archive-date = 7 March 2010 | url = http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/explosion-rocks-uss-enterprise | title = Explosion rocks USS Enterprise | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20100307190728/http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/explosion-rocks-uss-enterprise | work= History.com}}</ref> The explosion set off fires and additional explosions across the flight deck.{{Citation_needed|date=August 2019}}

The fires were brought under control relatively quickly (when compared with previous carrier flight deck fires), but 27 sailors were killed, and an additional 314 sailors were injured. The fire destroyed 15 aircraft, and the resulting damage forced ''Enterprise'' to put in for repairs at [[Pearl Harbor]] Naval Shipyard, Hawaii, primarily to repair the flight deck's armored plating.<ref>{{Citation | archive-date=28 September 2007| url = http://www.militaryvideo.com/store/store.cfm?titleID=EnterpriseF&do=detail | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20070928135916/http://www.militaryvideo.com/store/store.cfm?titleID=EnterpriseF&do=detail | title= Military video}}</ref> On 1 March 1969, repairs to the ship were completed and the ship proceeded on her scheduled western Pacific (WESTPAC) deployment to Vietnam and the Tonkin Gulf. These destinations would be delayed by events in the eastern Sea of Japan.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Cox |first=Samuel J |date=31 January 2019 |title=H-025-2 USS Enterprise Fire 1969 |url=https://www.history.navy.mil/about-us/leadership/director/directors-corner/h-grams/h-gram-025/h-025-2.html |access-date=October 9, 2023 |website=Naval History and Heritage Command}}</ref>
[[File:USS Enterprise (CVN-65) burning, stern view.jpg|thumb|right|View of ''Enterprise''{{'}}s stern during the fire, January 1969]]

===Korean operations===
On 14 April 1969, tensions with North Korea flared again as a [[North Korea]]n aircraft [[1969 EC-121 shootdown incident|shot down]] a [[Lockheed EC-121 Warning Star]] that was on a reconnaissance patrol over the eastern Sea of Japan from its base at [[Atsugi, Kanagawa|Atsugi]], Japan. The entire 31-man crew was killed. The US responded by activating Task Force 71 (TF 71) to protect future such flights over those [[international waters]]. Initially, the Task Force was to comprise ''Enterprise'', {{USS|Ticonderoga|CV-14|2}}, {{USS|Ranger|CV-61|2}}, and {{USS|Hornet|CV-12|2}} with a screen of cruisers and destroyers. ''Enterprise'' arrived on station with TF 71 in late April after completion of repairs. The ships for TF 71 came mostly from Southeast Asia duty. This deployment became one of the largest shows of force in the area since the Korean War.{{citation needed|date=August 2012}}

===1970s===
In 1969–1970, ''Enterprise'' returned to Newport News Shipbuilding and went through an overhaul and her second refitting. In January 1971, she completed sea trials with newly designed nuclear reactor cores that contained enough energy for 10 years. On 11 June 1971 ''Enterprise'', with Captain [[Forrest S. Petersen]] now in command and [[Carrier Air Wing Fourteen]] (CVW-14) onboard, then departed for Vietnam again.<ref name=Grossnick>{{cite book|last1=Grossnick|first1=Roy A.|last2=Evans|first2=Mark|title=United States Naval Aviation, 1910-2010|year=2016|publisher=Naval History and Heritage Command|isbn=9780945274759|url=https://www.history.navy.mil/content/dam/nhhc/research/publications/1910/Part5.pdf}}{{PD-notice}}</ref>{{rp|423}}

====South and Southeast Asia====
[[File:USS Enterprise (CVAN-65) and USS Hassayampa (AO-145) 1973.jpg|left|thumb|''Enterprise'' during an [[underway replenishment]] with the fleet oiler {{USS|Hassayampa|AO-145|2}} in the [[South China Sea]] in 1973]]
''Enterprise'', {{USS|Oriskany|CV-34|2}} and {{USS|Midway|CV-41|2}} launched a total of 2,001 strike sorties by 30 July 1971. Strike operations in July were disrupted when the carriers on station evaded three [[typhoon]]s: Harriet, Kim and Jean. A slight increase in [[South Vietnam]] strike sorties occurred during the month. These were mainly visual strikes against enemy troop positions and in support of U.S. [[helicopter]] operations. From August–November 1971, ''Enterprise'' was in operations on [[Yankee Station]].<ref name=Grossnick/>{{rp|423}}

In December 1971, Captain [[Ernest E. Tissot Jr.]] assumed command, and ''Enterprise'' was deployed to the [[Bay of Bengal]], during the [[Indo-Pakistani War of 1971]] as a show of strength against India's naval blockade by [[INS Vikrant (1961)|INS ''Vikrant'']]. Later a [[Soviet Navy]] submarine was also trailing the US task force. A confrontation was averted when ''Enterprise'' moved away from the Indian Ocean toward Southeast Asia.<ref>{{Citation | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20110609180906/http://www.bharat-rakshak.com/NAVY/History/1971War/Games.html | archive-date = 9 June 2011 | url = http://www.bharat-rakshak.com/NAVY/History/1971War/Games.html | title = Bharat Rakshak | contribution = Cold war games}}</ref> ''Enterprise'' completed its deployment on 12 February 1972.<ref name=Grossnick/>{{rp|423}}

''Enterprise'' returned to the South China Sea from 12 September 1972 with CVW-14 onboard.<ref name=Grossnick/>{{rp|424}} On 18 December 1972, the United States resumed bombing campaigns above the 20th parallel under the name [[Operation Linebacker II|Linebacker II]]. During Linebacker II operations, ''Enterprise'' and other carriers on station reseeded the mine fields in [[Haiphong]] harbor and conducted concentrated strikes against surface-to-air missile and anti-aircraft artillery sites, enemy army barracks, petroleum storage areas, Haiphong naval and shipyard areas, and railroad and truck stations. Navy tactical air attack sorties under Linebacker II were centered in the coastal areas around Hanoi and Haiphong. There were 705 Navy sorties in this area during Linebacker II. Between 18 and 22 December, the Navy conducted 119 Linebacker II strikes in North Vietnam, with the main limiting factor on airstrikes being bad weather.{{Citation_needed|date=August 2019}} In December 1972, the North Vietnamese returned to the peace table and Linebacker II ended. In January 1973, the Vietnam cease-fire was announced, and American carriers ceased all combat sorties into North and South Vietnam.{{citation needed|date=August 2016}} From 28 January 1973, aircraft from ''Enterprise'' and ''Ranger'' flew 81 combat sorties against lines-of-communication targets in [[Laos]]. The corridor for overflights was between [[Huế]] and [[Da Nang]] in South Vietnam. These combat support sorties were flown in support of the Laotian government, which had requested this assistance. Laos had no relationship with the ceasefire in Vietnam.{{citation needed|date=August 2016}} ''Enterprise'' completed its deployment on 12 June 1973.<ref name=Grossnick/>{{rp|424}}

====Post-Vietnam====
After the cease-fire in Vietnam in 1973, ''Enterprise'' proceeded to the [[Puget Sound Naval Shipyard and Intermediate Maintenance Facility|Puget Sound Naval Shipyard]], [[Bremerton, Washington]], where the carrier was altered and refitted to support the Navy's newest fighter aircraft – the [[Grumman F-14 Tomcat]]. Two of four [[jet blast deflector]]s were enlarged to accommodate the Tomcat. The No. 4 propulsion shaft was replaced; it had been bent when its screw became fouled in a discarded [[arresting gear]] cable.{{Citation_needed|date=August 2019}}

On 18 March 1974, the first operational Tomcats of [[VF-1]] Wolfpack and [[VFA-2|VF-2]] Bounty Hunters made their maiden takeoffs and landings from the carrier. In September 1974, ''Enterprise'' became the first carrier to deploy with the new fighter plane when she made her seventh WESTPAC deployment.<ref name=Grossnick/>{{rp|426}}

In February 1975, [[1974–75 South-West Indian Ocean cyclone season#Very Intense Tropical Cyclone Gervaise|Typhoon Gervaise]] struck the island nation of [[Mauritius]], and ''Enterprise'' was ordered to provide disaster relief. Arriving at [[Port Louis]], carrier personnel spent more than 10,000 [[man-hour]]s rendering such assistance as restoring water, power and telephone systems, clearing roads and debris, and providing helicopter, medical, food and drinkable water support to the stricken area.{{Citation_needed|date=August 2019}}

====Operation Frequent Wind====
[[File:USS Enterprise (CVAN-65) returning from Saigon evacuation 1975.jpeg|thumb|''Enterprise'' en route back to the United States following the [[Operation Frequent Wind|evacuation of Saigon]]; the forward end of the flight deck contains a number of [[United States Marine Corps|USMC]] [[Sikorsky CH-53 Sea Stallion|CH-53 Sea Stallion]] helicopters.]]
In April 1975, ''Enterprise'', ''Midway'', {{USS|Coral Sea|CV-43|2}}, {{USS|Hancock|CV-19|2}} and {{USS|Okinawa|LPH-3|2}} were deployed to waters off South Vietnam for possible evacuation contingencies as [[North Vietnam]], in violation of the [[Paris Peace Accords]], launched a conventional invasion of South Vietnam. On 29 April, [[Operation Frequent Wind]] was carried out by U.S. Navy and U.S. Marine Corps helicopters from the 7th Fleet. The Operation involved the evacuation of American citizens and "at-risk" Vietnamese from [[Ho Chi Minh City|Saigon]], the capital of South Vietnam under heavy attack from the invading forces of North Vietnam.<ref name=Final>{{cite web|url=http://www.history.navy.mil/seairland/chap5.htm|title=Chapter 5: The Final Curtain, 1973 – 1975 |publisher=history.navy.mil|year=2000|access-date=24 July 2007}}{{PD-notice}}</ref>

President [[Gerald Ford]] ordered helicopter evacuation when [[PAVN]] shelling forced the cessation of fixed-wing evacuation from [[Tan Son Nhut Airport]]. With fighter cover provided by carrier aircraft, the helicopters landed at the [[US Embassy, Saigon]] and the [[Military Assistance Command, Vietnam#MACV Headquarters/DAO Compound|DAO Compound]] to pick up evacuees. The last helicopter lifted off the roof of the United States Embassy at 7:53&nbsp;am, local time, on 30 April 1975 carrying the last 11 [[Marine Security Guards]]. During Operation Frequent Wind, aircraft from ''Enterprise'' flew 95 sorties.<ref name=Final/> VF-1 and VF-2, flying from ''Enterprise'' made the first combat deployment of the F-14 Tomcat.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Tobin|first=Thomas|title=USAF Southeast Asia Monograph Series Volume IV Monograph 6: Last Flight from Saigon|publisher=US Government Printing Office|year=1978|isbn=978-1-4102-0571-1|pages=98–9}}{{PD-notice}}</ref>

====Eighth and ninth deployments====
In July 1976, ''Enterprise'' began her eighth Western Pacific deployment. Beginning in October she took part in the ANZUS exercise 'Kangaroo II' with ships of the Australian and New Zealand Navies.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.navy.gov.au/sites/default/files/documents/Navy_News-November-5-1976.pdf |title=Navy News|publisher=Australian Gov. |date=November 5, 1976 |website=Navy News |access-date=November 21, 2018}}</ref>

One of the ports visited was [[Hobart|Hobart, Tasmania]] in November 1976. It had also been the first time an American ship anchored in the capital's harbor, Hobart, since the early 1920s. A beer with a picture of the ''Enterprise'' for its label was just one of the commemorations received by the renowned nuclear carrier.{{Citation_needed|date=August 2019}}

In February 1977, [[Idi Amin]], the President of [[Uganda]], made derogatory remarks against the United States in public and Americans in Uganda were taken hostage. This was several months after the [[Israel]]i [[Operation Entebbe|raid at Entebbe airport]]. ''Enterprise'' and her escort ships were scheduled to transit home after a seven-month deployment but having just left [[Mombasa]] after a port call, were directed to remain in the area and operated off the east African coast for about one week. The ship's Marine detachment and air wing prepared for a possible mission to rescue and evacuate the Americans, but Amin eventually released all the hostages. The ships then steamed across the Indian Ocean at high speed to make a previously scheduled final port call at [[Naval Air Station Cubi Point|NAS Cubi Point]] in the Philippines before returning to NAS Alameda.{{Citation_needed|date=August 2019}}
[[File:Schiffspost USS Enterprise - CVN-65 - U.S.Navy Dec 7 AM 1978 - Bild 003.jpg|thumb|Maritime Mail – USS ''Enterprise'' – CVN-65 – US Navy Dec 7&nbsp;am 1978]]
In 1978, ''Enterprise'' underwent her ninth Western Pacific deployment, the last before the ship's planned major refit. The 1978 WESTPAC cruise included port calls in Hong Kong, Perth, Australia, and Singapore, and ended at the end of the year. In January 1979, the carrier arrived at Puget Sound Naval Shipyard for the intended 36-month refurbishment. This overhaul modified the ship's superstructure&nbsp;– removing the SCANFAR radars and the unique inverted cone-shaped top section, which was three stories high. During the lengthy overhaul, Navy and shipyard personnel referred to ''Enterprise'' as ''Building 65.''{{Citation_needed|date=August 2019}}

===1980s===
[[File:USS Enterprise (CVN-65) after refit 1982.jpg|thumb|''Enterprise'' in 1982 following her major 36-month refit]]
In 1982, the carrier made her 10th WESTPAC deployment. In April 1983, ''Enterprise'' ran aground on a sandbar in San Francisco Bay while returning from deployment and remained stuck there for several hours.<ref>{{Citation | archive-date = 22 January 2011 | url = http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,923599,00.html | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20110122093055/http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0%2C9171%2C923599%2C00.html | title = Off Course | newspaper = Time | date = 9 May 1983 | url-status = dead | df = dmy-all }}</ref> Coincidentally, [[George Takei]], who played Mr. Sulu, helmsman of the fictional starship {{USS|Enterprise|NCC-1701|2}}, was aboard at the time as a guest of the Navy.<ref>{{Citation| archive-date = 7 December 2010| url = http://www.history.navy.mil/danfs/e4/enterprise-viiie.htm | archive-url = http://webarchive.loc.gov/all/20101207144902/http%3A//www%2Ehistory%2Enavy%2Emil/danfs/e4/enterprise%2Dviiie%2Ehtm| title = History | publisher = Navy | place = US}}</ref> Even though groundings and collisions are usually career-ending events for U.S. warship captains, the captain at the time, [[Robert J. Kelly]], who had already been selected for promotion to commodore, eventually became a four-star admiral and [[Commander, U.S. Pacific Fleet|Commander-in-Chief of the US Pacific Fleet]].<ref>{{Citation | archive-date = 13 November 2007 | url = http://www.cpf.navy.mil/former_commander.htm | contribution = Former commander | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20071113132019/http://www.cpf.navy.mil/former_commander.htm | title = CPF | publisher = US Navy }}</ref>
[[File:USS Midway (CV-41) Coral Sea (CV-43) and Enterprise (CVN-65) off Alaska 1983.JPEG|thumb|left|''Enterprise'' (right) operating with the {{sclass|Midway|aircraft carrier|0}} carriers {{USS|Coral Sea|CV-43|2}} (top left) and {{USS|Midway|CV-41|2}} (bottom left) off [[Alaska]] during the FLEETEX 1983 exercise]]
In 1985, the Enterprise began training for her 11th WESTPAC deployment. Late at night on 2 November 1985 with Captain [[Robert L. Leuschner Jr.]] on the bridge, she struck Bishop Rock on the [[Cortes Bank]] during flight exercises, damaging the outer hull with a gash more than 100 feet in length and knocking out of one screw, a chip whose size was illustrated with a photograph of a Navy diver stretched out and reclining inside the notch.{{citation needed|date=January 2016}} The cost of repairing the damage was $17&nbsp;million, and Leuschner was relieved of command on 27 January 1986 as a result of the incident, by Captain [[Robert J. Spane]].<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1986-02-26-mn-60-story.html |title=Commanding Carrier: Just One Mistake Can Torpedo a Navy Career |first=Glenn F. |last=Bunting |work=Los Angeles Times |date=26 February 1986 |access-date=13 October 2014}}</ref>

In 1986, the carrier made her 12th WESTPAC deployment, leaving on 15 January 1986. She led Battle Group FOXTROT, including {{USS|Truxtun|CGN-35|2}}, {{USS|Arkansas|CGN-41|2}}, {{USS|O'Brien|DD-975|2}}, {{USS|Reasoner|FF-1063|2}}, {{USS|Lewis B. Puller|FFG-23|2}}, {{USS|McClusky|FFG-41|2}}, {{USS|David R. Ray|DD-971|2}} and {{USS|Wabash|AOR-5|2}}. The Battle Group sailed directly for the Indian Ocean, with stops in Hawaii, Subic Bay, and Singapore.<ref>{{Citation| last = McClusky | title = Command History | year = 1986}}</ref> On 28 April 1986, ''Enterprise'' became the first nuclear-powered aircraft carrier to transit the [[Suez Canal]]. She went from the [[Red Sea]] to the Mediterranean to relieve ''Coral Sea'', on station with {{USS|America|CV-66|2}} off the coast of [[Libya]]. ''Enterprise'' entered the Mediterranean to support "[[Bombing of Libya (1986)|Operation El Dorado Canyon]]", the US bombing of Libya. It was the ship's first visit to the Mediterranean in more than 22 years. During the deployment, Rear Admiral J.T. Howe was relieved as Commander [[Carrier Strike Group Nine|Cruiser-Destroyer Group 3]] by Rear Admiral Paul David Miller.<ref>{{Citation| title = Enterprise Command History | year = 1986}}</ref>
[[File:F-18A VFA-161 landing on USS Enterprise (CVN-65) 1987.JPEG|thumb|An [[McDonnell Douglas F/A-18 Hornet|F/A-18A Hornet]] lands on ''Enterprise'' in 1987.]]
In February 1988, ''Enterprise'' underwent her 13th deployment and was assigned to [[Operation Earnest Will]], escorting reflagged [[Kuwait]]i oil tankers in the Persian Gulf. On 14 April, another Earnest Will ship, {{USS|Samuel B. Roberts|FFG-58|2}}, struck an Iranian mine in [[international waters]]. In response, the US launched [[Operation Praying Mantis]] against Iranian targets, starting with two Iranian [[oil platform]]s that were being used as support bases for Iranian attacks on merchant shipping. [[Third VA-95 (U.S. Navy)|Aircraft]] from ''Enterprise''{{'}}s [[Carrier Air Wing 11|CVW-11]] bombed two Iranian frigates, helping to sink one and damaged the other, and provided other air support for the strike.<ref name = "nohigherhonor">{{cite book|title= No Higher Honor: Saving the USS Samuel B. Roberts in the Persian Gulf| last= Peniston| first = Bradley|year= 2006 | publisher= Naval Institute Press | location= Annapolis, Maryland | isbn= 1-59114-661-5| pages= 181–87 | url = http://www.navybook.com/nohigherhonor/ |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20090118045104/http://www.navybook.com/nohigherhonor/|archive-date=18 January 2009 }}</ref>

In September 1989, ''Enterprise'' left Alameda and began her 14th overseas deployment, an around-the-world cruise that would end at the ship's new homeport of [[Naval Station Norfolk]], Virginia. In early December 1989, ''Enterprise'' and ''Midway'' participated in [[1989 Philippine coup attempt#American Involvement|Operation Classic Resolve]], President [[George H. W. Bush]]'s response to Philippine President [[Corazon Aquino]]'s request for air support during the rebel coup attempt. ''Enterprise'' remained on station conducting flight operations in the waters outside Manila Bay until the situation subsided.{{Citation_needed|date=August 2019}}

===1990s===
In April 1990, ''Enterprise'' completed her around-the-world deployment, arriving in [[Norfolk, Virginia]], after having steamed more than {{cvt|43000|mi}} (nautical). In October, the carrier moved to Newport News Shipbuilding for refueling and the Navy's largest [[Refueling and Overhaul|complex overhaul]] refit ever attempted. On 27 September 1994, ''Enterprise'' returned to sea for sea trials, now with Captain [[Richard J. Naughton]] in command, during which she performed an extended full power run as fast as when she was new.<ref>{{Cite web |date=1995-03-06 |title=USS Enterprise (CVN-65): 1994 Command History |url=https://www.history.navy.mil/content/dam/nhhc/research/archives/command-operation-reports/ship-command-operation-reports/e/enterprise-cvn-65-viii/pdf/1994.pdf |access-date=2022-07-19 |website=Navy.mil}}</ref>

On 28 June 1996, ''Enterprise'' began her 15th overseas deployment. The carrier enforced no-fly zones in Bosnia as part of [[Implementation Force|Operation Joint Endeavor]] and over Iraq as part of [[Operation Southern Watch]]. The deployment ended in December 1996, which also marked the end of active service for the [[Grumman A-6 Intruder]] from the Navy. February 1997, ''Enterprise'' entered Newport News Shipbuilding for an extended selective restrictive availability lasting four-and-a-half months.{{Citation_needed|date=August 2019}}

[[File:Enterprise Cruising.JPG|thumb|''Enterprise'' patrols the [[Persian Gulf]] in support of [[Operation Desert Fox]].|alt=Aircraft carrier steaming away from camera in open sea. On deck is a large contingent of aircraft]]

In November 1998, following workups, ''Enterprise'' departed on her 16th overseas deployment, with [[Carrier Air Wing Three|CVW-3]] embarked. On the night of 8 November, shortly after the start of the deployment, a [[Northrop Grumman EA-6B Prowler]] crashed into a [[Lockheed S-3 Viking]] on the carrier's flight deck. The mishap occurred as the EA-6B was landing during night [[carrier qualification]]s, striking the folded wings of the S-3, which had not yet cleared the landing area of the flight deck.{{Citation_needed|date=August 2019}}

The four-man crew of the EA-6B perished when the aircraft hit the water, but the two crew members of the S-3 [[Ejection seat|ejected]]. A fire broke out on the flight deck but was quickly extinguished by the flight deck crew. Three of the four members of the Prowler crew were lost at sea, and the remains of the fourth were recovered shortly after the crash. The crew of the Viking were rushed to the [[Naval Medical Center Portsmouth]], Virginia. There were no other significant injuries. An exhaustive search for three missing EA-6B Prowler crew members was suspended after nearly 24 hours.{{Citation_needed|date=August 2019}}

On 23 November 1998, ''Enterprise'' relieved {{USS|Dwight D. Eisenhower|CVN-69|2}} in the Persian Gulf.
[[File:President George HW Bush on the USS Enterprise.jpg|thumb|Former President Bush visits ''Enterprise'' on 5 December 1998.]] [[File:Hootie and the Blowfish 1998.jpg|thumb|right|Hootie and the Blowfish play for ''Enterprise'' crew on 5 December 1998.]]

During a port call in Jebel Ali, UAE, the carrier hosted former President George H. W. Bush and enjoyed a live concert by rock group [[Hootie & the Blowfish]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://dod.defense.gov/OIR/gallery/igphoto/2001238322/|title=Hootie and the Blowfish perform for the crew members of the USS Enterprise|publisher= U.S. Department of Defense |access-date= 19 October 2019}}</ref>

In December 1998, ''Enterprise'' battlegroup spearheaded [[Operation Desert Fox]], destroying Iraqi military targets with more than 300 [[Tomahawk (missile family)|Tomahawk land attack missiles]] and {{convert|691000|lb|ST t|abbr=in}} of ordnance. The 70-hour assault was carried out by ''Enterprise'', {{USS|Gettysburg|CG-64|2}}, {{USS|Stout|DDG-55|2}}, {{USS|Nicholson|DD-982|2}} and {{USS|Miami|SSN-755|2}}.{{Citation_needed|date=August 2019}}

Shortly after the [[Račak massacre]] and failure of [[Yugoslavia]]n [[Rambouillet Agreement|peace talks]] in [[Rambouillet]], France, ''Enterprise'' quickly left a port visit in [[Cannes]], France, to return to the [[Adriatic]].{{Citation_needed|date=August 2019}}

In early March 1999, ''Enterprise'' returned to the Persian Gulf to relieve {{USS|Carl Vinson|CVN-70|2}} in support of [[Operation Southern Watch]], returning to Norfolk in May 1999.{{Citation_needed|date=August 2019}}

During the 1998–1999 deployment, ''Enterprise'' steamed more than {{cvt|50000|nmi}}<!-- nautical --> and spent 151 days underway. ''Enterprise'' Battle Group was the first to deploy with [[IT-21]], which allowed unprecedented internal and external communication capabilities, including Internet, email, and television.{{Citation_needed|date=August 2019}}

===2000s===
[[File:USS Enterprise FS Charles de Gaulle.jpg|thumb|right|''Enterprise'', the first nuclear-powered carrier (left) with what was then the newest: French carrier [[French aircraft carrier Charles de Gaulle (R91)|''Charles de Gaulle'']], 16 May 2001]]

In March 2001, ''Enterprise'' took part in the exercise ''JTFEX 01-2'' in the [[Caribbean Sea]].<ref>{{ cite web | url=https://www.historycentral.com/navy/features/JTFEX.html | title=JTFEX Exercise Concluded | publisher=historycentral.com | access-date=2020-12-18 }}</ref> ''U24'', a [[Type 206 submarine|Type 206 class]] diesel-electric submarine with the [[German Navy]], managed to "sink" the ''Enterprise'' by firing [[flare]]s and taking a photograph through its [[periscope]].<ref>{{cite news | url=https://www.t-online.de/nachrichten/militaer-special/id_61572852/militaer-deutsches-u-boot-fordert-us-marine-heraus-.html | publisher=t-online | title=Deutsches U-Boot fordert US-Marine heraus | date=2013-01-06 | access-date=2020-12-18 | language=de}}</ref>

On 25 April 2001, ''Enterprise'' began her 17th overseas deployment with [[Carrier Air Wing Eight|CVW-8]] embarked and Captain [[James A. Winnefeld Jr.]] in command. From 18–28 June, the carrier and four escorts participated in an exercise with the [[Royal Navy]] in a joint and combined warfare training exercise in the [[North Sea]], near the [[Hebrides]] and in [[Scotland]].{{Citation_needed|date=August 2019}}

''Enterprise'' was beginning her voyage home from the [[Persian Gulf]] when the [[September 11 attacks]] were carried out. Without orders, the carrier returned to the waters off Southwest Asia near the [[Persian Gulf]], outrunning her escorts.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.navy.mil/submit/display.asp?story_id=69497|title=Big E Honors Victims of 9/11 Attacks|first=Brian G.|last=Reynolds}}</ref> In October 2001, the United States launched air attacks against [[Al-Qaeda]] training camps and [[Taliban]] military installations in [[Afghanistan]]. The actions were designed to disrupt the use of Afghanistan as a base for terrorist operations and to attack the military capability of the Taliban regime.{{Citation_needed|date=August 2019}}

Over three weeks, aircraft from ''Enterprise'' flew nearly 700 missions and dropped over {{cvt|800000|lb|ST t}} of ordnance over Afghanistan.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.public.navy.mil/airfor/enterprise/Documents/Enterprise/the_legend.html |title=The Legend of Enterprise |publisher=US Navy |access-date=9 April 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130301095522/http://www.public.navy.mil/airfor/enterprise/Documents/Enterprise/the_legend.html |archive-date=1 March 2013 |df=dmy-all }}</ref> On 10 November, the carrier arrived at her home port of [[Norfolk, Virginia]], 16 days later than originally planned. During her last day at sea, the ship hosted a live two-hour broadcast of [[American Broadcasting Company|ABC]]'s ''Good Morning America''. [[Garth Brooks]] performed a concert with [[Jewel (singer)|Jewel]] from ''Enterprise'' on 21 November while she was docked in Norfolk, Virginia. The concert was carried live on [[CBS]]. On Pearl Harbor Day (7 December 2001), President [[George W. Bush]] addressed the sailors of ''Enterprise'' from its flight deck.<ref>{{cite news|title=Bush remembers Pearl Harbor aboard USS Enterprise|url=http://archives.cnn.com/2001/ALLPOLITICS/12/07/rec.bush.pearl/index.html|publisher=CNN.com|access-date=20 February 2013|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101202063756/http://archives.cnn.com/2001/ALLPOLITICS/12/07/rec.bush.pearl/index.html|archive-date=2 December 2010|df=dmy-all}}</ref>

In January 2002, ''Enterprise'' entered the [[Norfolk Naval Shipyard]], Portsmouth, Virginia for a scheduled one-year Extended Dry Docking Selected Restricted Availability.{{Citation_needed|date=August 2019}}

====Iraq War====

=====Operation Iraqi Freedom=====
[[File:US Navy 040427-N-6187M-003 Members assigned to USS Enterprise (CVN 65) Damage Control Team test their fire-fighting agent.jpg|thumb|Members assigned to USS ''Enterprise'' Damage Control Team test their fire-fighting agent before entering the simulator during the Damage Control Olympics during Fleet Week 2004.]]

From September 2003 to February 2004, the ship deployed to relieve the four carriers that were on station during the [[Iraq War|invasion of Iraq]]. Enterprise's role was to provide continued air support for Operation Iraqi Freedom. The fully repaired {{USS|Cole|DDG-67|2}} was a member of her escort group at this time. A USO tour was held aboard while at sea, with wrestler [[Kurt Angle]], NASCAR racer [[Mike Wallace (racing driver)|Mike Wallace]], and comedian [[Robin Williams]] giving talks and performances. The ship made several port-calls to Jebel Ali, a stop in Bahrain (during which actor [[Ben Affleck]] visited the ship), and Naples, Italy and Cartegna, Spain on the way home. Admiral [[James Stavridis]] commanded the battle group at this time with Captain Eric Neidlinger as ''Enterprise''{{'}}s commanding officer.{{Citation_needed|date=August 2019}}

[[File:Star Trek actors meet crewmembers of the real USS Enterprise (US Navy) (2003).jpg|thumb|USS ''Enterprise'' Sailors of the Year appeared on the set of the Paramount Television series ''[[Star Trek: Enterprise|Enterprise]]'' to present the cast and crew with an American flag in 2003. The flag was flown in their honor as gratitude for the support the cast and crew of the TV series have given the crew of the carrier.]]

2005 saw the ship in for another routine shipyard overhaul at Newport News Shipyard in Newport News, Virginia. Departing the dock after this yard period, ''Enterprise'' ran through a sand bar, causing all eight reactors to shut down, leaving the ship adrift on emergency power for nearly three hours before she was tugged back to her pier at Norfolk Naval Base. It took about three days for the ship's nuclear machinists to clear her condensers of river mud.<ref name="usni1">{{Cite web |date=2022-08-23 |title=Navy May Dismantle Former Nuclear-Powered Aircraft Carrier Enterprise at Commercial Yard |url=https://news.usni.org/2022/08/23/navy-may-dismantle-former-nuclear-powered-aircraft-carrier-enterprise-at-commercial-yard |access-date=2023-01-25 |website=USNI News |language=en-US}}</ref>

In May 2006, ''Enterprise'' departed for a six-month deployment, operating in the [[United States Sixth Fleet|6th]], [[United States Fifth Fleet|5th]] and [[United States Seventh Fleet|7th]] Fleet areas in a world-tour, supporting Operations Iraqi and Enduring Freedom, and visiting ports in Dubai, Hong Kong, and [[Line-crossing ceremony|crossing the line]]. She returned to Norfolk on 18 November 2006.<ref name="usni1"/>

On 19 December 2007, the carrier returned home after a six-month deployment in the Persian Gulf.<ref>{{Citation | url = http://www.charlottesvillenewsplex.tv/home/headlines/12631106.html | title = USS Enterprise Returns Home | newspaper = Charlottesville newplex TV | access-date = 10 April 2008 | archive-date = 2 April 2009 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20090402033749/http://www.charlottesvillenewsplex.tv/home/headlines/12631106.html | url-status = dead }}</ref>

In April 2008, ''Enterprise'' entered the Northrop-Grumman Newport News shipyard for a scheduled 18-month Extended Docking Selected Restricted Availability, with a projected completion date of September 2009. As maintenance was performed, costs continued to rise above projections and the completion date repeatedly slid. ''Enterprise'', the oldest active combat vessel in the Navy, was scheduled to be decommissioned as late as 2014. On 6 April 2009, Admiral [[Gary Roughead]], [[Chief of Naval Operations]], said that he was seeking a congressional dispensation to speed up the process to decommission ''Enterprise''. Under this new timetable, the ship would complete one final deployment before being decommissioned in late 2012 or early 2013. This would temporarily reduce the US Navy to having only ten active aircraft carriers through the launch of the {{USS|Gerald R. Ford|CVN-78|2}} in 2015. In October 2009, the House and Senate Armed Services Committees agreed with the recommendation, approving the decommissioning of ''Enterprise'' in 2013 after 51 years of service.<ref name="retire2"/>

===2010s===
[[File:US Navy 110714-N-YC446-145 The aircraft carriers USS Enterprise (CVN 65) and USS Dwight D. Eisenhower (CVN 69) pass as Enterprise returns to homepo.jpg|thumb|''Enterprise'' meets with {{USS|Dwight D. Eisenhower|CVN-69|2}} in the Atlantic in July 2011; ''Enterprise'' is returning to Norfolk at the end of her six-month cruise to the Mediterranean and the Persian Gulf, while ''Eisenhower'' is [[Sea trial|working up]] following a six-month maintenance period.]]
In April 2010, the Navy announced that the cost of refurbishing the carrier had risen to $655&nbsp;million and was scheduled to be completed the same month.<ref>Frost, Peter, "USS Enterprise Delayed Again; Cost of Maintenance Balloons 44.5 Percent", ''[[Daily Press (Virginia)|Newport News Daily Press]]'', 1 April 2010.</ref> On 19 April 2010, ''Enterprise'' left the [[Northrop Grumman]] shipyard to conduct sea trials in preparation for return to the fleet.<ref name="ASD News">{{Citation | publisher = ASD news | url = http://www.asdnews.com/news/27375/Enterprise_Departs_for_Sea_Trials.htm | title = Enterprise Departs for Sea Trials | access-date = 19 April 2010 | archive-date = 21 April 2010 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20100421075211/http://www.asdnews.com/news/27375/Enterprise_Departs_for_Sea_Trials.htm | url-status = dead }}</ref> The total cost of refurbishing the carrier was $662&nbsp;million, which was 46% over budget, while the programme of work took eight months longer than scheduled. The Navy said it planned to use the carrier for two six-month deployments before her scheduled 2013 decommissioning date.<ref>Frost, Peter. [https://www.dailypress.com/2010/04/20/uss-enterprise-after-spending-2-years-in-newport-news-enterprise-returned-to-navy/ "USS Enterprise: After Spending 2 Years in Newport News, Enterprise Returned to Navy"] . ''[[Daily Press (Virginia)|Newport News Daily Press]]'', 20 April 2010.</ref>

On 1 January 2011, the Virginian-Pilot leaked highlights from the final video of a set entitled "XO Movie Night" that was filmed on ''Enterprise'' and aired via closed circuit television on select Saturday evenings. The videos, which were not meant for release outside the command, were produced by Captain [[Owen Honors]] when he was executive officer (XO) of the ship in the 2006–07 timeframe and included profanity, anti-gay slurs, and sexually suggestive scenes.<ref>{{cite web|date=December 2010 | url = http://hamptonroads.com/2010/12/raunchy-videos-starring-enterprise-skipper-come-light | title= Raunchy videos starring Enterprise skipper come to light |access-date= 2 January 2011 | work = Hampton roads}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url = https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-12114023|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20110105090056/http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-12114023 | archive-date = 5 January 2011 | title = Navy Captain Owen Honors 'to lose post for lewd videos' | access-date = 4 January 2011 | work = BBC News | date = 4 January 2011}}</ref>

Captain Honors received public support from Navy personnel,<ref>{{cite web| work = NBC News | url = https://www.nbcnews.com/id/wbna40889027 |title= Navy to relieve officer during inquiry over lewd videos | date = 3 January 2011 | access-date = 3 January 2011}}</ref> but on 4 January 2011, Admiral John C. Harvey Jr., the commander of the United States Fleet Forces Command in Norfolk removed Honors for demonstrating poor judgment. Captain [[Dee Mewbourne]] was appointed as replacement commander.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.navy.mil/search/display.asp?story_id=57937 |title=USFF Relieves USS Enterprise Commanding Officer | location = US | publisher = Navy – Fleet Forces Command Public Affairs |access-date=4 January 2011}}</ref> Forty officers and enlisted sailors, including six [[flag officer]]s, were later disciplined to varying extents over the incident.<ref>''[[Military Times]]'', "[http://www.navytimes.com/news/2011/03/navy-harvey-honors-investigation-030311w/ 40 faulted in Enterprise video investigation]", 3 March 2011; Retrieved 4 March 2011.</ref>

The carrier and her strike group deployed on 13 January 2011. Accompanying the carrier on the cruise to the Persian Gulf and Mediterranean were [[Carrier Air Wing One]], guided-missile cruiser {{USS|Leyte Gulf|CG-55|2}}, and guided-missile destroyers {{USS|Barry|DDG-52|2}}, {{USS|Bulkeley|DDG-84|2}}, and {{USS|Mason|DDG-87|2}}.<ref>Lessig, Hugh, "Enterprise Carrier Group To Deploy Next Week", ''[[Daily Press (Virginia)|Newport News Daily Press]]'', 8 January 2011.</ref> In February 2011, ''Enterprise'' was involved in an [[SY Quest incident|incident]] with [[Somali pirates]], an event that ended in the deaths of four American citizens and two pirates. According to official reports of this incident provided by the navy, two pirates died; with another two dying at an unknown earlier time.<ref>{{Citation| url = https://www.nbcnews.com/id/wbna41715530 | title = Four American hostages killed by Somali pirates |work = NBC News| date = 22 February 2011 }}</ref>

The carrier returned to Norfolk on 15 July 2011. During its deployment, it had participated in operations that captured 75 Somali pirates and its strike group made missile strikes against the Libyan government.<ref>Wilson, Todd Allen, "USS Enterprise Returns To Norfolk", ''[[Daily Press (Virginia)|Newport News Daily Press]]'', 16 July 2011.</ref>
[[File:USS Enterprise (CVN-65) returning from her last deployment 2012.jpg|thumb|left|''Enterprise'' enters Norfolk for the final time on 4 November 2012.]]

11 March 2012 began the final deployment from Norfolk homeport with Carrier Group Ships {{USS|Vicksburg|CG-69|6}}, {{USS|Porter|DDG-78|2}}, {{USS|Nitze||2}} and {{USS|James E. Williams||2}} and on 9 April 2012, the Navy announced that ''Enterprise'' and her group, [[Carrier Strike Group Twelve]], would be assigned to join {{USS|Abraham Lincoln|CVN-72|2}} in the Persian Gulf. The mission was described as routine, not a response to a specific threat. Upon completion of this cruise in fall 2012, ''Enterprise'' was officially taken out of service, and was ordered to report back immediately to Norfolk for immediate deactivation, and eventual decommissioning.<ref>{{Citation| url = https://news.yahoo.com/us-navy-deploys-2nd-aircraft-carrier-gulf-104816846.html | title = US Navy deploys 2nd aircraft carrier to Gulf | publisher = Yahoo! news | date = 9 April 2012 | access-date = 9 April 2012}}</ref>

In October 2012, ''Enterprise'' transited the Suez Canal for the final time.<ref>{{cite web |author=Reynolds |first=Brian G.|date=15 October 2012 |title=''Enterprise'' Transits The Suez Canal for the Final Time |url=http://www.navy.mil/submit/display.asp?story_id=70146 |access-date=15 October 2012 |work=NNS121015-04 |publisher=Enterprise Carrier Strike Group Public Affairs}}</ref> She paid her last foreign port call when she visited [[Naples, Italy]], between 16–21 October, which had been the Big E's first foreign port-of-call fifty years earlier.<ref name="NNS121019-01">{{cite web |author=Smith |first=Steve|date=19 October 2012 |title=''Enterprise'' Arrives in Naples, Italy For Final Foreign Port Visit |url=http://www.navy.mil/submit/display.asp?story_id=70234 |access-date=21 October 2012 |work=NNS121019-01 |publisher=Enterprise Strike Group Public Affairs}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |author=Reynolds |first=Brian G.|date=22 November 2012 |title=''Enterprise'' Visits Naples for the Last Time |url=http://www.navy.mil/submit/display.asp?story_id=70234 |access-date=5 November 2012 |work=NNS121022-05 |publisher=Enterprise Strike Group Public Affairs}}</ref>

On 4 November 2012, ''Enterprise'' returned to her homeport at Naval Station Norfolk, Virginia, for the last time. While on the journey, the carrier cruised nearly 81,000 miles in a 238-day deployment to the Persian Gulf and her aircraft flew more than 2,000 sorties in support of Operation Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan.<ref>{{Citation | date = 5 November 2012 | publisher = Military | url = http://www.military.com/daily-news/2012/11/05/enterprise-ends-51-year-career-at-sea.html?ESRC=eb.nl&code=121105DEBH01 | title = Enterprise ends 51-year career at sea}}</ref>

====Decommissioning====
[[File:USS Enterprise CVN-65 on decommissioning day.jpg|thumb|left|USS ''Enterprise'' on 1 December 2012]]

''Enterprise'' was deactivated on 1 December 2012 at Norfolk Naval Station, Virginia. The deactivation of ''Enterprise'' resulted in a one-time increase of approximately $857.3&nbsp;million in depot maintenance costs for the US Navy's operation and maintenance budget for Fiscal Year 2013.<ref>{{cite web|author=Under Secretary of Defense (Comptroller)/chief financial officer|author-link=Under Secretary of Defense (Comptroller)|title=Operation and Maintenance Overview: Fiscal Year 2012 Budget Estimates operation|url=http://comptroller.defense.gov/defbudget/fy2013/fy2013_OM_Overview.pdf|publisher=[[United States Department of Defense|Department of Defense]]|location=Washington, D.C., US|page=Navy – 13|date=February 2012|access-date=4 June 2012|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120703064829/http://comptroller.defense.gov/defbudget/fy2013/fy2013_OM_Overview.pdf|archive-date=3 July 2012|df=dmy-all}}</ref>

''Enterprise'' was the first nuclear-powered aircraft carrier to be decommissioned.<ref name="navytimes.com">{{Citation| newspaper=Navy times|url=http://www.navytimes.com/news/2009/04/navy_enterprise_040509w/|title=CNO wants faster decommissioning for ''Enterprise''|date=7 April 2009}}</ref> Naval enthusiasts requested that ''Enterprise'' be converted into a museum.<ref name="lastdeployment">{{cite web|url=http://www.navytimes.com/news/2010/09/navy-enterprise-prepares-last-combat-deployment-092010w/|title=Big E preps for final combat deployment|work=Navy Times|last=Erwing|first=Phillip|date=21 September 2010|access-date=22 September 2010}}</ref><ref>{{Citation|url=http://cvn65.epetitions.net/|contribution=CVN65|title=ePetitions}}</ref> By 2012, this was deemed too expensive to make such an effort practical, in addition to the fact that the ship would need to be partially dismantled anyway to remove the eight reactors safely.<ref name="10March12"/> A petition was also set up for the next carrier to be named as the ninth USS ''Enterprise''.<ref>{{cite web|work=ePetitions|url=http://ussenterp.epetitions.net/signatures.php?petition_id=1870|title=Signatures for A Petition to name the next United States Navy nuclear powered aircraft carrier the USS ''Enterprise''|access-date=18 June 2011|archive-date=7 February 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120207150137/http://ussenterp.epetitions.net/signatures.php?petition_id=1870|url-status=dead}}</ref>
[[File:USS Enterprise makes its final voyage. (9100691233).jpg|thumb|In 2013, the de-masted ''Enterprise'' was towed from Norfolk to Newport News for de-fueling in preparation for breakup.]]

At the inactivation ceremony, [[United States Secretary of the Navy|Secretary of the Navy]] [[Ray Mabus]] announced that the next ''Gerald R. Ford''-class carrier, {{USS|Enterprise|CVN-80|1}}, would be named ''Enterprise''.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.defense.gov/releases/release.aspx?releaseid=15708|publisher=U.S. Navy|title=News Release – Navy's Next Ford-Class Aircraft Carrier to be Named ''Enterprise''|access-date=1 December 2012|date=1 December 2012}}</ref> VIPs present for the ceremony included several former commanding officers, a granddaughter of the ship's sponsor, and a former [[Grumman A-6 Intruder|A-6]] pilot, [[Eugene McDaniel]], who had been shot down and captured in [[North Vietnam]] and was returning to the ship for the first time since the day he was shot down.{{Citation_needed|date=August 2019}}

[[File:USS Enterprise (CVN-65) Dismantling, December 2014.png|thumb|left|''Enterprise'' at Newport News in December 2014]]
On 8 February 2013, the [[United States Department of Defense]] announced that a number of nuclear projects would have to be postponed until the upcoming [[budget sequestration]] issue was resolved. These include the planned de-fueling of ''Enterprise'' as well as mid-life overhauls (including nuclear refueling) for two {{sclass|Nimitz|aircraft carrier|0}} ships.<ref>{{cite news|title=Navy delays overhaul of aircraft carrier USS ''Abraham Lincoln'', citing budget concerns|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/navy-delays-overhaul-of-aircraft-carrier-uss-abraham-lincoln-due-to-budget-concerns/2013/02/08/cd2cee38-7233-11e2-b3f3-b263d708ca37_story.html|archive-url=https://archive.today/20130412040806/http://www.washingtonpost.com/local/navy-delays-overhaul-of-aircraft-carrier-uss-abraham-lincoln-due-to-budget-concerns/2013/02/08/cd2cee38-7233-11e2-b3f3-b263d708ca37_story.html|archive-date=12 April 2013|agency=Associated Press|newspaper=[[Washington Post]]|date=8 February 2013|access-date=10 February 2013|url-status=dead}} and {{cite web|title=Lack of Funding Affects USS ''Lincoln'' Refueling and Complex Overhaul|url=http://www.navy.mil/submit/display.asp?story_id=71992|work=NNS130208-17|publisher=Defense Media Activity&nbsp;– Navy|date=8 February 2013|access-date=10 February 2013|archive-date=13 December 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141213012723/http://www.navy.mil/submit/display.asp?story_id=71992|url-status=dead}}</ref> The contract for de-fueling ''Enterprise'' was eventually awarded to [[Huntington Ingalls Industries]] in June 2013.<ref>{{cite web|title=HII Awarded $745 Million Contract to Inactivate USS ''Enterprise'' (CVN 65)|url=http://ir.huntingtoningalls.com/phoenix.zhtml?c=243052&p=irol-newsArticle&ID=1834000|publisher=Huntonton Ingalls Industries|date=28 June 2013|access-date=12 December 2014}}</ref>

In October 2014, Newport News Shipbuilding announced that one of ''Enterprise''{{'}}s anchors, removed from the ship during deactivation, had been transferred to the {{sclass| Nimitz | aircraft carrier|0}} {{USS|Abraham Lincoln|CVN-72|2}} during her [[Refueling and Overhaul|RCOH]].<ref>{{Citation|url=http://www.cnn.com/2014/10/03/us/navy-carrier-anchor/|title=Carrier turns donor: USS ''Enterprise'' gives anchor to USS ''Lincoln''|publisher = CNN |date=3 October 2014}}</ref> In early 2017, it was announced that steel from CVN-65 will be recycled and used to construct CVN-80.<ref>{{cite news|last=Corillo|first=Todd|title=World's first nuclear powered aircraft carrier officially decommissioned|url=http://wtkr.com/2017/02/03/worlds-first-nuclear-powered-aircraft-carrier-uss-enterprise-officially-decommissioned/|access-date=3 February 2017|work=WKTR|date=3 February 2017}}</ref> Over 35,000 pounds of steel has been removed from CVN-65 and repurposed into CVN-80.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Naval News Staff |date=2022-08-28 |title=HII Lays Keel of Future USS ''Enterprise'' (CVN 80) Aircraft Carrier |url=https://www.navalnews.com/naval-news/2022/08/hii-lays-keel-of-future-uss-enterprise-cvn-80-aircraft-carrier/ |access-date=2022-08-29 |website=Naval News |language=en-US}}</ref> The crew of the ship's final deployment built a [[time capsule]] constructed from her steel and wood to preserve the carrier's history for CVN-80.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Knight |first=Matt |date=2012-11-30 |title=Sailors aboard the USS Enterprise prepare a time capsule |url=https://www.wtkr.com/2012/11/30/sailors-aboard-the-uss-enterprise-preapare-a-time-capsule |access-date=2022-07-08 |website=WTKR |language=en}}</ref>

[[File:USS Enterprise (CVN-65) at Newport News Shipbuilding on 15 July 2018 (180715-N-AO748-0061).JPG|thumb|The decommissioned ''Enterprise'' alongside her replacement, USS ''Gerald R. Ford'', at Newport News, July 2018]]
The final reactor was de-fueled in December 2016,<ref name="Decommissioning"/> with Enterprise officially decommissioned on 3 February 2017.<ref>{{cite web|last=Johnson|first=Kevin|title=Navy Decommissions "The Big E"|url=http://www.navy.mil/submit/display.asp?story_id=98707|website=navy.mil|publisher=United States Navy|access-date=3 February 2017}}</ref> The same day, the ship was stricken from the ''Naval Vessel Registry'' (NVR). According to Navy Sea Systems Command, the recycling of ''Enterprise'' was delayed by the Navy until further information on "more technically executable, environmentally responsible" approaches to disposing of the aircraft carrier are available.<ref name="pilotonline.com">{{cite web|url=http://pilotonline.com/news/military/local/navy-delays-recycling-of-decommissioned-aircraft-carrier-enterprise/article_1a4094ee-e42f-53c3-9379-6bb029ced698.html|title=Navy delays recycling of decommissioned USS ''Enterprise'', which will be put in storage|last=Mabeus|first=Courtney}}</ref> On 10 April 2018, Newport News Shipbuilding announced that ''Enterprise''{{'}}s inactivation process has been completed. ''Ex-Enterprise'' was stored at [[Hampton Roads]] while disposal plans were determined by the Navy.<ref name="65 inactivation">{{cite news|url=http://wtkr.com/2018/04/10/newport-news-shipbuilding-says-inactivation-of-former-uss-enterprise-is-complete/|title=Newport News Shipbuilding says inactivation of former USS ''Enterprise'' is complete|last=Mitchell|first=Becca|date=10 April 2018|work=WKTR|access-date=15 December 2023}}</ref>

The final disposal plan for ''Enterprise'' will be a long and complicated process. The carrier had eight reactors and numerous compartments contaminated by radiation and therefore could not be used as a [[target ship]] in a ''SINKEX'' or live-fire training sinking exercise. The Navy set up a new office to organize the disposal of ''Enterprise'' and the coming retirement of the [[Nimitz-class aircraft carrier|''Nimitz''-class carriers]]. Ultimately, it was decided to use a commercial facility to break the ship up, with scrapping to begin in 2025. The process is anticipated to take five years, with the Enterprise to be gone completely by 2030.<ref>{{cite web |last=Katz |first=Justin |title=Uncharted waters: Navy navigating first-ever dismantling of nuclear-powered carrier |url=https://breakingdefense.com/2023/11/uncharted-waters-navy-navigating-first-ever-dismantling-of-nuclear-powered-carrier/ |website=BreakingDefense.com |publisher=Breaking Media, Inc |access-date=15 December 2023 |date=15 November 2023}}</ref>

==Awards and decorations==
{| style="margin:1em auto; text-align:center;"
|{{ribbon devices|number=0|type=service-star|ribbon=Joint Meritorious Unit Award-3d.svg|width=103}}
|{{ribbon devices|number=3|type=service-star|ribbon=Navy Unit Commendation ribbon.svg|width=103}}
|{{ribbon devices|number=6|type=service-star|ribbon=Navy Meritorious Unit Commendation ribbon.svg|width=103}}
|-
|{{ribbon devices|number=0|type=service-star|ribbon=Battle Effectiveness Award ribbon, 3rd award.svg|width=103}}
|{{ribbon devices|number=1|type=service-star|ribbon=Navy Expeditionary Medal ribbon.svg|width=103}}
|{{ribbon devices|number=2|type=service-star|ribbon=National Defense Service Medal ribbon.svg|width=103}}
|-
|{{ribbon devices|number=9|type=service-star|ribbon=Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal ribbon.svg|width=103}}
|{{ribbon devices|number=10|type=service-star|ribbon=Vietnam Service Medal ribbon.svg|width=103}}
|{{ribbon devices|number=4|type=service-star|ribbon=Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary ribbon.svg|width=103}}
|-
|{{ribbon devices|number=1|type=service-star|ribbon=Armed Forces Service Medal ribbon.svg|width=103}}
|{{ribbon devices|number=1|type=service-star|ribbon=Humanitarian Service ribbon.svg|width=103}}
|{{ribbon devices|number=12|type=service-star|ribbon=Sea Service Deployment Ribbon.svg|width=103}}
|-
|{{ribbon devices|number=27|type=service-star|ribbon=Vietnam gallantry cross unit award-3d.svg|width=103}}
|{{ribbon devices|number=0|type=service-star|ribbon=VNCivilActionsRibbon-2.svg|width=103}}
|{{ribbon devices|number=0|type=service-star|ribbon=Vietnam Campaign Medal ribbon with 60- clasp.svg|width=103}}
|}

{| class="wikitable" style="margin:1em auto; text-align:center;"
|[[Joint Meritorious Unit Award]]
|[[Navy Unit Commendation]] with three [[service star|stars]]
|[[Meritorious Unit Commendation]] with six stars
|-
|[[Navy E Ribbon]] with three Battle "E" devices
|[[Navy Expeditionary Medal]] with one star
|[[National Defense Service Medal]] with two stars
|-
|[[Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal]] with nine stars
|[[Vietnam Service Medal]] with ten stars
|[[Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary Medal]] with four stars
|-
|[[Armed Forces Service Medal]] with one star
|[[Humanitarian Service Medal]] with one star
|[[Sea Service Deployment Ribbon]] with twelve stars
|-
|[[Gallantry Cross (Vietnam)|Republic of Vietnam Meritorious Unit Citation (Gallantry Cross)]]
|[[Civil Actions Medal|Republic of Vietnam Civil Actions Unit Citation]]
|[[Vietnam Campaign Medal]]
|}

==In popular culture==

In the 1986 science-fiction film ''[[Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home]]'', [[Pavel Chekov]] and [[Uhura]] infiltrate the ''Enterprise''. Scenes set on the ''Enterprise'' were actually filmed aboard the {{USS|Ranger|CV-61}} since the actual ''Enterprise'' was at sea during filming.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Okuda |first1=Michael |title=The Star Trek Encyclopedia |last2=Okuda |first2=Denise |last3=Mirek |first3=Debbie |publisher=becker&mayer |year=2016 |isbn=9780062371331 |edition=4 |volume=1 |publication-date=2016 |page=245 |author-link1=Michael Okuda |author-link2=Denise Okuda}}</ref>

The ''Enterprise'' is a setting in the film ''[[Top Gun]]'', also released in 1986. Shots of the main characters' F-14s on the flight deck and general flight-ops scenes were filmed on both the actual ''Enterprise'' and the {{USS|Carl Vinson|CVN-70}}, with the latter being used after the ''Enterprise'' ran aground at [[Cortes Bank]]. The USS ''Ranger'' again substituted for the ''Enterprise'' for interior shots.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.q13fox.com/news/aircraft-carrier-uss-ranger-used-in-movies-top-gun-and-star-trek-iv-heading-for-texas-scrap-yard|title=Aircraft carrier USS Ranger, used in movies 'Top Gun' and 'Star Trek IV', heading for Texas scrap yard|date=5 March 2015|work=Q13 Fox|publisher=Associated Press|access-date=17 August 2021}}</ref>

The ''Enterprise'' is at the center of The Raft, a refugee flotilla, in the 1992 novel ''[[Snow Crash]].''

==See also==
<!---♦♦♦ Please keep the list in alphabetical order ♦♦♦--->
* [[Aerial warfare]]
* [[Air supremacy]]
* [[Carrier battle group]]
* [[Carrier strike group]]
* [[Carrier Strike Group 12]]
* [[List of aircraft carriers]]
* [[List of aircraft carriers of the United States Navy]]
* [[List of longest ships]]
* [[List of ships of the United States Navy named Enterprise|List of ships of the United States Navy named ''Enterprise'']]
* [[Russian aircraft carrier Admiral Kuznetsov]]

==References==
===Notes===
{{reflist|group=lower-alpha}}

===Citations===
{{Reflist}}

===Bibliography===
*{{citation |editor-last=Blackman |editor-first=Raymond V. B. |title=Jane's Fighting Ships 1971–72 |year=1971 |location=London |publisher=Jane's Yearbooks |isbn=0-354-00096-9}}
* {{Citation | last = Cracknell | first = W. H. | title = Warship Profile 15: USS Enterprise (CVAN 65) Nuclear Attack Carrier|year=1972| publisher = Profile Publications |location=Windsor, UK}}
* {{citation |last=Friedman |first=Norman |author-link=Norman Friedman |title=U.S. Aircraft Carriers: An Illustrated Design History |year=1983 |location=Annapolis, Maryland, USA |publisher=Naval Institute Press |isbn=0-87021-739-9}}
* {{citation |editor1-last=Gardiner |editor1-first=Robert |editor2-last=Chumbley |editor2-first=Stephen |title=Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships 1947–1995 |year=1995 |location=Annapolis, Maryland, USA |publisher=Naval Institute Press |isbn=1-55750-132-7}}
* {{citation |last=Polmar |first=Norman |author-link=Norman Polmar |title=The Ships and Aircraft of the U.S. Fleet |year=1981 |edition=Twelfth |location=London |publisher=Arms and Armour Press |isbn=0-85368-397-2}}
* {{Citation | title = United States Naval Aviation, 1910–1995 | publisher = Naval Historical Center}}
* USS ''Enterprise'' (CVN 65) public affairs office
* {{DANFS}}

==External links==
{{external media
|width= 30%
|image1={{cite web |url=http://www.maritimequest.com/warship_directory/us_navy_pages/aircraft_carriers/enterprise_cvn_65/uss_enterprise_cvn_65_page_1.htm |title=USS ''Enterprise'' (CVN-65) |website=Maritime quest}}
|video1={{cite AV media |title=''Enterprise'' in War. Nuclear Carrier Joins 7th Fleet, 1965/08/30 (1965) |year=1965 |url =https://archive.org/details/1965-08-30_Enterprise_in_War |publisher=[[Universal Newsreel|Universal Studios]] |website=[[Internet Archive]] }}
|video2={{cite AV media |title=Vietnam Action. ''Enterprise'' Planes Support Troops, 1965/12/09 (1965) |year=1965 |url =https://archive.org/details/1965-12-09_Vietnam_Action |publisher=[[Universal Newsreel|Universal Studios]] |website=[[Internet Archive]] }}
}}
{{Commonscatinline}}
* {{Cite web |url=https://carrierdisposaleis.com/ |title=Disposal of Decommissioned, Defueled Ex-Enterprise (CVN 65) and Its Associated Naval Reactor Plants EIS/OEIS |publisher=[[United States Navy]]}}
* {{cite web |url=http://www.enterprise.navy.mil/ |title=Official USS ''Enterprise'' website |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150117120258/http://www.enterprise.navy.mil/ |archive-date=2015-01-17}}
* {{cite web |url={{Naval Vessel Register URL|id=CVN65}} |title=''Enterprise'' (CVN 65) (ex-CVAN 65) |website=[[Naval Vessel Register]]}}
* {{cite web |url=http://www.navy.mil/local/story_archive.asp?id=7 |title=USS ''Enterprise'' (CVN 65) Story Archive |website=Navy News Service |access-date=2 December 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130516113455/http://www.navy.mil/local/story_archive.asp?id=7 |archive-date=16 May 2013 |url-status=dead |df=dmy-all }}
* {{cite web |url=http://www.mooj.com/rxdept.htm |title=Official Big E Reactor and Engineering Memories |website=King Paul |access-date=2 April 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150427235754/http://www.mooj.com/rxdept.htm |archive-date=27 April 2015 |url-status=dead |df=dmy-all }}
* {{cite DANFS |url=https://www.history.navy.mil/browse-by-topic/ships/modern-ships/enterprise.html |title=Enterprise (CVN-65)}}
*: {{hlist
|[https://www.history.navy.mil/research/histories/ship-histories/danfs/e/enterprise-cvan-65-viii-1961-1965.html 1961–1965]
|[https://www.history.navy.mil/research/histories/ship-histories/danfs/e/enterprise-cvan-65-viii-1966-1970.html 1966–1970]
|[https://www.history.navy.mil/research/histories/ship-histories/danfs/e/enterprise-cvan-65-viii-1971-1975.html 1971–1975]
|[https://www.history.navy.mil/research/histories/ship-histories/danfs/e/enterprise-cvan-65-viii-1976-1980.html 1976–1980]
|[https://www.history.navy.mil/research/histories/ship-histories/danfs/e/enterprise-cvan-65-viii-1981-1985.html 1981–1985]
|[https://www.history.navy.mil/research/histories/ship-histories/danfs/e/enterprise-cvan-65-viii-1986-1990.html 1986–1990]
|[https://www.history.navy.mil/research/histories/ship-histories/danfs/e/enterprise-cvan-65-viii-1991-1995.html 1991–1995]
|[https://www.history.navy.mil/research/histories/ship-histories/danfs/e/enterprise-cvan-65-viii-1996-2000.html 1996–2000]
|[https://www.history.navy.mil/research/histories/ship-histories/danfs/e/enterprise-cvan-65-viii-2001-2004.html 2001–2004]
}}
* {{cite web |url=http://www.cvan-cvn-65.org/ |title=USS ''Enterprise'' CVAN/CVN-65 Association}}
* {{cite web |url=http://www.navysite.de/cvn/cvn65.html |title=USS ''Enterprise'' (CVN 65) |website=Navy site}}
* {{cite web |url=http://www.uscarriers.net/cvn65history.htm |title=USS ''Enterprise'' CVN-65 |website=US Carriers}}
* USS ''Enterprise'' (CVAN-65/CVN-65) command histories from [[Naval History & Heritage Command]]
* {{cite DANFS |url=https://www.history.navy.mil/browse-by-topic/ships/modern-ships/enterprise.html |title=Enterprise (CVN-65) Commanding Officers}}
{{s-start}}
{{succession box|title=USS ''Enterprise''|before={{USS|Enterprise|CV-6|1}}|after={{USS|Enterprise|CVN-80|1}} |years=1961–2013}}
{{succession box | title=Oldest active combat ship of the [[United States Navy]] | before={{USS|Kitty Hawk|CV-63}}|after={{USS|Denver|LPD-9}}| years=2009–2012}}
{{S-end}}

{{Enterprise class aircraft carrier}}
{{US Navy navbox}}
{{1969 shipwrecks}}
{{Nuclear surface ships}}
{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Enterprise (Cvn-65)}}
[[Category:Aircraft carriers of the United States Navy]]
[[Category:1960 ships]]
[[Category:Nuclear-powered ships of the United States Navy]]
[[Category:Cold War aircraft carriers of the United States]]
[[Category:Vietnam War aircraft carriers of the United States]]
[[Category:Ships built in Newport News, Virginia]]
[[Category:Afghanistan War ships of the United States]]
[[Category:Nuclear-powered aircraft carriers]]
[[Category:Ships of the Indo-Pakistani wars]]
[[Category:Indo-Pakistani war of 1971]]
[[Category:Carl Vinson]]