[Reuters] The U.S. Navy told Congress it wants to keep 11 aircraft carriers through 2045, just days after Defense Secretary Robert Gates called into question the need for that many.

"The Navy remains firmly committed to maintaining a force of 11 carriers for the next three decades," Sean Stackley, the service's warship buyer, told the Senate Armed Services Seapower subcommittee on Thursday.

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[CNN International] An Iranian navy plane that approached a U.S. aircraft carrier last week was flying as low as 300 feet as it neared the USS Eisenhower, U.S. military officials said Wednesday.

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[Mobile Daily News] After spending two years at Northrop Grumman Corp.'s Newport News shipyard for its final major maintenance project, the USS Enterprise aircraft carrier was re-delivered to the Navy on Monday after successful sea trials.

The nation's oldest warship entered Hampton Roads harbor just after 1 p.m. Monday, its flight deck lined with sailors clad in dress whites to celebrate the completion of the ship's last dry-dock availability in Newport News.  Read more...

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[10News.com]  The arrival of a new U.S. Navy aircraft carrier on Monday will bring with it thousands of new people and millions of dollars in economic benefits to San Diego.  San Diego has not had three aircraft carriers in port at the same time for quite some time, and getting a pier at Naval Base Coronado ready for the USS Carl Vinson was no small undertaking.

Linda Lindsey, the wife of USS Carl Vinson commanding officer Capt. Yancy Lindsey, officially christened the carrier's new home Friday. In addition to the Carl Vinson, the USS Freedom -- which took fuel from the carrier and worked with the strike group USS Bunker Hill and USS Lake Champlain -- is also coming to San Diego, but is not due to arrive until later this month.  Read the rest of the story...

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[Heraldnet.com]  U.S. military aircraft landed and took off from the aircraft carrier USS Carl Vinson during a military exhibition in Rio de Janeiro today.  The U.S. Navy aircraft carrier arrived Friday to take part in activities with Brazilian naval forces.

U.S. sailors will also participate in work with local community groups, just a few weeks after taking part in the Operation Unified Response, the international humanitarian aid mission in Haiti.  Read more...

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[Navy Compass] Sailors from Commander Third Fleet (C3F) and Naval Base Point Loma line the sidewalk of Catalina Blvd. in Point Loma on March 4, 2010 to render honors to Chief Electrician’s Mate John Conyers.  Conyers, assigned to aircraft carrier USS Ronald Reagan (CVN 76), was killed in an electrical accident onboard the ship on Feb. 19, 2010.  Read more...

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[Miami Herald]  At a hearing with the Navy's top brass, U.S. Sen. Jim Webb expressed his misgivings about the possible loss of a nuclear-powered aircraft carrier from Virginia waters.

The Virginia Democrat on Thursday told Secretary of the Navy Raymond E. Mabus Jr. that the proposed home-porting of a carrier from Naval Station Norfolk to Florida is not a done deal.  Webb says the Navy should grow the fleet rather than invest in an upgrade of Mayport Naval Station for the arrival of a carrier now based in Norfolk.

Norfolk lays exclusive East Coast claim to all five of the Navy's nuclear-powered carriers. The Navy wants to move one for national security reasons.  Webb addressed Mabus and other military leaders during a Senate committee hearing in Washington.

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[Packers.com] The visit began with quite the thrill ride, and everything just got more and more impressive after that.  Last weekend, a group of Green Bay Packers - kicker Mason Crosby, punter Jeremy Kapinos, fullback John Kuhn, equipment manager Gordon "Red" Batty, assistant equipment manager Tom Bakken and head athletic trainer Pepper Burruss - joined more than 2,000 sailors aboard the USS John C. Stennis, a nuclear-powered Navy supercarrier, to watch Super Bowl XLIV.

Only they didn't just hop on the big boat from shore. They flew to it, somewhere off the coast of San Diego, and landed on the aircraft carrier just like all the military personnel do. And not in some helicopter or hovercraft either.

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[Jacksonville Business Journal] A leaked crucial military report reconfirms that Mayport Naval Station will get a nuclear-powered aircraft carrier.  The Web site of the political newsletter CongressDaily reveals that it is expected to take $500 million and five years to Mayport ready to house the carrier. The Quadrennial Defense Review, which will be formally submitted to Congress Monday afternoon, reports that moving a carrier to Northeast Florida will “mitigate the risk of a terrorist attack, accident or natural disaster...”

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[National Post] WASHINGTON -- A U.S. nuclear-powered aircraft carrier will serve as a landing pad for a fleet of helicopters rushing in emergency teams and vital supplies to quake victims.

Military officials said the USS Carl Vinson, a Nimitz-class super carrier, is designed for war and projecting American power but is well-suited for the humanitarian mission in Haiti after Tuesday's massive earthquake.

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