The U.S. Navy’s Only ‘Forward-Deployed’ Supercarrier Has Gone To Sea

Key Points:

• The USS George Washington (CVN-73), the U.S. Navy's only forward-deployed nuclear-powered aircraft carrier, departed Yokosuka, Japan for post-maintenance sea trials, potentially lasting about a week ahead of a possible summer deployment.
• Carrier Air Wing 5 (CVW-5), which typically embarks on USS George Washington, is conducting 10 days of field carrier landing practice drills on Iwo Jima through May 17, essential for pilot carrier landing qualifications and regional deterrence.
• USS George Washington returned to Yokosuka in November 2024 after an extended midlife refueling and complex overhaul that lasted nearly six years, delayed by budget constraints, the COVID-19 pandemic, and labor issues.
• The overhaul included extensive structural and systems upgrades, improving aircraft launch and recovery equipment, hull maintenance, and crew living conditions, involving over 25 million man-hours.
• Since January 2025, with the USS Abraham Lincoln deployed to the Arabian Sea, there has been no U.S. aircraft carrier presence in the western Pacific until USS George Washington resumed patrols after her return to Japan.