Overview
- The USS Nimitz is concluding a long global deployment that began with its March departure from Naval Base Kitsap and included a circumnavigation of South America and participation in the International Naval Review in New York.
- The Navy announced it has extended Nimitz’s active-duty service until at least March 2027 to match the commissioning timeline for the Gerald R. Ford–class carrier USS John F. Kennedy.
- The ship is relocating its homeport to Naval Station Norfolk, though the Navy has not given a specific day for the carrier’s arrival.
- Nearly 3,000 sailors are expected to come to Norfolk with the carrier while the ship’s air wing and many embarked personnel will disembark before the vessel docks.
- Commissioned in 1975, Nimitz is the Navy’s longest-serving aircraft carrier and its nuclear powerplant allows rapid transits, making the timing of the move part of a broader fleet sequencing tied to new-carrier deliveries.