page_title: Nimitz-class aircraft carrier
section_title: Propulsion
hierarchical_section_title: Nimitz-class aircraft carrier / Description / Propulsion
caption_attribution_description: 050723-N-9132D-034 Newport News, Va. - Northrop Grumman Newport News Shipyard employees reattach a propeller to the number three shaft aboard the Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS George Washington (CVN 73). The ship has four brass propellers that are 22 feet in diameter and weigh 66,200 pounds. Washington is currently undergoing a docked Planned Incremental Availability at the Northrop Grumman Newport News Shipyard.
context_page_description: The Nimitz class is a class of ten nuclear-powered aircraft carriers in service with the United States Navy. The lead ship of the class is named after World War II United States Pacific Fleet commander Fleet Admiral Chester W. Nimitz, who was the second-to-last living U.S. Navy officer to hold the rank, preceding William Halsey Jr.. With an overall length of 1,092 ft and full-load displacement of over 100,000 long tons, the Nimitz-class ships were the largest warships built and in service until USS Gerald R. Ford entered the fleet in 2017.
  Instead of the gas turbines or diesel-electric systems used for propulsion on many modern warships, the carriers use two A4W pressurized water reactors which drive four propeller shafts and can produce a maximum speed of over 30 knots and maximum power of around 260,000 shaft horsepower. As a result of the use of nuclear power, the ships are capable of operating for over 20 years without refueling and are predicted to have a service life of over 50 years. They are categorized as nuclear-powered aircraft carriers and are numbered with consecutive hull numbers between CVN-68 and CVN-77.
context_section_description: All ships of the class are powered by two A4W nuclear reactors, housed in separate compartments. The resulting steam spins four propeller shafts, producing a maximum speed of over 30 knots (56 km/h) and maximum power of 260,000 brake horsepower (190 MW).  The reactors produce heat through nuclear fission which heats water. This is then passed through four turbines which are shared by the two reactors. The turbines power the four bronze propellers, each with a diameter of 25 feet (7.6 m) and a weight of 66,000 pounds (30 t). Behind these are the two rudders which are 29 feet (8.8 m) high and 22 feet (6.7 m) long, and each weigh 110,000 pounds (50 metric tons).
  The Nimitz-class ships constructed since USS Ronald Reagan also have bulbous bows in order to improve speed and fuel efficiency by reducing wave-making resistance. As a result of the use of nuclear power, the ships are capable of operating continuously for over 20 years without refueling and are predicted to have a service life of over 50 years.
caption: One of the four propellers of George Washington
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