Decommissioning the Nimitz is a Huge Mistake..

[pxmcc]

but if you do it, will you have the 2nd baddest car on the planet (in a 10 way tie. granted, the Ford is a step up.) if so, fix the damn car..

otherwise, part it out and be done with it. letting it sit is silly. parts just rust and depreciate.

Originally Posted by ICU 812

Decomissionig the Nimitz: There is a cost/benafit analysis that they do, and it is pretty much buyilt in to the design and operational history.

On a much smaller but completely relevant scale . . .Our grand son has turned 16 with all that means.My 2001 Chevy Silverado ha 250,000 ,miles on it and has been parked outside for six years or so. It runs but it needs work . . .a lot of work. Some of it is cosmetic. /some of it is restorative (windows don't go up and down, heater/AC is out) and some of the work it needs is time related preventative such as replacing the belts,the head gasket and main seal and flushing/replacing all the fluids.

The least critical issues are b body work and a paint job, but the whole point of this post is that it all comes down to should we (can we) spend the several thousand dollars on refurbishing a 25 year old truck that has been driven hard( and is NOT a classic or rarity) just so this kid can have access to a vehicle?

At this point, several thousand could become many thousand dollars . . .we just don't know ow yet.

Aside from the difference in scale, its pretty much the same process of balancing pros and cons.

[Precious_b]

Originally Posted by ICU 812

Decomissionig the Nimitz: There is a cost/benafit analysis that they do, and it is pretty much buyilt in to the design and operational history.

On a much smaller but completely relevant scale . . .Our grand son has turned 16 with all that means.My 2001 Chevy Silverado ha 250,000 ,miles on it and has been parked outside for six years or so. It runs but it needs work . . .a lot of work. Some of it is cosmetic. /some of it is restorative (windows don't go up and down, heater/AC is out) and some of the work it needs is time related preventative such as replacing the belts,the head gasket and main seal and flushing/replacing all the fluids.

The least critical issues are b body work and a paint job, but the whole point of this post is that it all comes down to should we (can we) spend the several thousand dollars on refurbishing a 25 year old truck that has been driven hard( and is NOT a classic or rarity) just so this kid can have access to a vehicle?

At this point, several thousand could become many thousand dollars . . .we just don't know ow yet.

Aside from the difference in scale, its pretty much the same process of balancing pros and cons.

I like your example.
I had a 2500HD that same year that I liked driving as a work truck. Had alot of the same issues as yours. Company bought a new truck but wondered why I kept driving the old one. Well, for one, I know they'd stress and give me a whole lotta shit if I got one scratch on the new one. Was alot easier just to keep rolling in the old hoopty, problems and all. Took a couple of years (and them fighting the urge returning the new truck) but I finally changed over. And that old one found new life being gifted and the owner is taking care of a few things on it.

Sorry to digress. But I don't think the US will be giving this carrier to another country like they have with other ships in the past.

[The_Waco_Kid]

Originally Posted by pxmcc

but if you do it, will you have the 2nd baddest car on the planet (in a 10 way tie. granted, the Ford is a step up.) if so, fix the damn car..

otherwise, part it out and be done with it. letting it sit is silly. parts just rust and depreciate.

Nimitz will be scrapped eventually. like the Enterprise. it takes years because the first thing that has to happen is de-fueling the reactors which takes several years. then later the hull can be scrapped.



it also would take 24-36 months at least to refuel. Gordan Chang in his article neglects this fact. Nimitz's nuclear gas gauge is empty. it doesn't have enough reserve to be deployed for a standard 9 months patrol again let alone a possible extended operation if China attempts to occupy Taiwan.


of the 10 operational carriers not all are on active patrol. some let's say 2 are undergoing a major refit i.e. a nuclear refuel. others minor refits. the rest 2-3 ready but in port. so of the 10 now we could sortie 7-8 of them for deployment. that's still a significant numbers edge over China.



Chang's argument is readiness for a Taiwan conflict. the Nimitz won't matter. it's spent. so what does that really leave us?



if needed the US could sortie 6 nuclear and 6 nonnuclear assault carriers. China if they sortied all 3 main carriers and 3 of their assault carriers (they have 5 total) the US still has a 2 to 1 edge


US 12

China 6.



so Gordon Chang's conjecture is flawed and does not accurately account for the total carrier forces of the US that could be brought to bear compared to China.

[Precious_b]

Guess the above scenario is reason enough to be on good terms with your friends. Not threaten them if you don't get what you want.

[Unique_Carpenter]

Four of the remaining nine Ticonderoga class cruisers are in the Pacific.
They all carry nuke warheads.
There's always one of these with a Carrier fleet.

[Precious_b]

I hear the Ford is being recalled back because of frequent problems with its shitter.

[ICU 812]

Originally Posted by pxmcc

but if you do it, will you have the 2nd baddest car on the planet (in a 10 way tie. granted, the Ford is a step up.) if so, fix the damn car..

otherwise, part it out and be done with it. letting it sit is silly. parts just rust and depreciate.

Sure, If the "Overhauled" crowd took it and worked it over it would be the best Chevy half tone on the road. And it is looking like that is the only way it will happen too. And how cool that would be!

The total estimate to. get it back on the road in a condition we would feel safe letting the only heir drive around in is too high for us. . . .its looking like the nut will be over 10 grand.

Of course, the kid's argument is something like, "But what used car can be bought for 10K? And we say, "We don't really;;y care if you have a car of your own or not.'
SOME TIMES YOU MAY BE ALLOWED TOI DRIVE THE FAMIILY SEDAN (using my outside voice in the kitchen).

Anyway, we don't want him to have access to the most bad-ass truck. We don't really want his so-called buddies and wannabe girlfriends all viewing for a ride in what we now call The White Whale.

It is looking like my old truck and the Nimitz will have the same fate.

[pxmcc]

so how this works is, we retire one Nimitz-class carrier, add a Ford-class. China adds one carrier. we retire a second Nimitz, add another Ford. China adds a second carrier. rinse and repeat. anyone see a problem here?

now factor in that China can and does build carriers faster than we can, and that our civilian ship building industry is in a sorry state of disrepair, worth considering should war break out. who's going to have the edge once existing ships become casualties of war?

China's latest carrier continuing its sea trials near the Taiwan Strait..

https://www.globaltimes.cn/page/202601/1354457.shtml

business as usual: China approaches us, catches us, and then passes us, all while we stand by and watch, dutifully making observations and taking notes on the unfolding process. what could possibly go wrong..

desperate times call for desperate measures. the Nimitz should be re-readied for battle, not put out to pasture..

[NiceGuy53]

The new Ford class aircraft carrier, the USS John F. Kennedy is currently undergoing sea trials and is expected to join the fleet in March 2027. This carrier was originally scheduled to join the fleet in July 2025 but was pushed back because of the need for advanced systems certification.

The USS Nimitz will be decommissioned in May of this year. So the US Navy will have to make do with only 10 aircraft carriers for almost a year. But help is on the way.

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/na...c825cff523ba15
https://news.usni.org/2025/07/07/car...ers-for-1-year

[The_Waco_Kid]

Originally Posted by Precious_b

Guess the above scenario is reason enough to be on good terms with your friends. Not threaten them if you don't get what you want.

China is not our friend and never will be as long as the Communist party is in power.

Originally Posted by pxmcc

so how this works is, we retire one Nimitz-class carrier, add a Ford-class. China adds one carrier. we retire a second Nimitz, add another Ford. China adds a second carrier. rinse and repeat. anyone see a problem here?

now factor in that China can and does build carriers faster than we can, and that our civilian ship building industry is in a sorry state of disrepair, worth considering should war break out. who's going to have the edge once existing ships become casualties of war?

China's latest carrier continuing its sea trials near the Taiwan Strait..

https://www.globaltimes.cn/page/202601/1354457.shtml

business as usual: China approaches us, catches us, and then passes us, all while we stand by and watch, dutifully making observations and taking notes on the unfolding process. what could possibly go wrong..

desperate times call for desperate measures. the Nimitz should be re-readied for battle, not put out to pasture..

Nope. the Nimitz is finished as a viable combat vessel. it's three years to refuel. then what? if it's not ready by the time China makes its move for Taiwan possibly as soon as 2027 then it does no good there. and now you've got a carrier designed for a 50 year life span pushed to 70-75 years? it's like driving a car with 500,000 miles on it, it becomes failure prone. that's bad if you break down on the highway in combat it's the kiss of death.



i think you are overestimating the so-called issues with US ship building. yes i've read several articles on the subject recently. one of the reasons for the new Ford class is to keep in place and current the infrastructure to build them.



you are also overestimating China. they might be able to out produce the US with conventional carriers but they are building a nuclear powered carrier as a prototype/lead of the class and they will have problems and serious delays. they have experience with nuclear powered subs but a nuclear powered carrier is a entirely different level.



Japan once underestimated US manufacturing. that didn't work out too well for them. China might find themselves in the same situation. one of the reasons Japan attacked Pearl Harbor is because Admiral Yamamoto unlike General Tojo who only briefly visited the US spent several years in the US and knew full well the sheer size of the US ensured that Japan could not win a long term war with the US so the only possible way to win was a sneak attack on Pearl Harbor to cripple the US Pacific fleet. and it still failed because the real target was the three carriers in the Pacific. none were at Pearl Harbor at the time. less than a year later those carriers delivered a crushing defeat to the Japanese Navy at Midway. Japan after their decisive defeat at Midway had lost 5 carriers to the US 2. from Midway on the IJN was on the defensive in the Pacific. Japan did manage to build 3 new carriers during the war. we build 30 total over half main battle carriers the rest escort carriers.

[ICU 812]

Originally Posted by pxmcc

so how this works is, we retire one Nimitz-class carrier, add a Ford-class. China adds one carrier. we retire a second Nimitz, add another Ford. China adds a second carrier. rinse and repeat. anyone see a problem here?

now factor in that China can and does build carriers faster than we can, and that our civilian ship building industry is in a sorry state of disrepair, worth considering should war break out. who's going to have the edge once existing ships become casualties of war?

China's latest carrier continuing its sea trials near the Taiwan Strait..

https://www.globaltimes.cn/page/202601/1354457.shtml

business as usual: China approaches us, catches us, and then passes us, all while we stand by and watch, dutifully making observations and taking notes on the unfolding process. what could possibly go wrong..

desperate times call for desperate measures. the Nimitz should be re-readied for battle, not put out to pasture..

I agree wimthmost of that.

I am not sure about this, but I am thinking that there is some limitation on how many nuclear carriers the US Navy may have in commission at the same time.