The Kitty Hawk-class supercarriers were an incremental evolution of American naval power in the 1960s.

Wars & Conflicts · Published 15 October 2026 Swipe more like this →

In short: As the final conventionally powered supercarriers of the United States Navy, the Kitty Hawk-class vessels represented a significant refinement of flight deck operations. From their unique elevator placements to their ambitious service life extension programs, these ships defined a critical era of maritime strategy before the transition to nuclear propulsion.

The Kitty Hawk-class ships were designed as an improvement over the preceding Forrestal-class vessels. The primary structural shift involved the placement of aircraft elevators. By moving the fourth elevator from the forward end to the aft end of the flight deck, designers cleared the landing and launch paths of the waist catapults, significantly enhancing the efficiency of aircraft movement. The class consisted of three ships built in the 1960s: Kitty Hawk, Constellation, and America. While John F. Kennedy is often associated with the group, her extensive modifications—including a different smokestack design and a length reduction of 17 feet—led to her classification as a separate, single-vessel class.

Technological evolution defined the class's lifespan. Initially, the first three units were equipped with Terrier surface-to-air missile systems, which were eventually removed because they duplicated the capabilities of escort ships and occupied excessive space. Over time, the vessels were upgraded with NATO Sea Sparrow and Phalanx CIWS systems. America was unique among post-World War II U.S. carriers for being built with an AN/SQS-23 sonar array, though it was removed in the early 1980s. Propulsion remained consistent across the primary units, utilizing four Westinghouse geared turbines capable of generating 280,000 shaft horsepower.

To maintain operational readiness, the Navy initiated the Service Life Extension Program (SLEP), intended to add 15 years to the ships' service lives. Kitty Hawk underwent this overhaul from 1987 to 1991 for $785 million, while Constellation followed from 1990 to 1992 for $800 million. America was scheduled for a similar refit but was decommissioned in 1996 due to post-Cold War budget constraints. Following her decommissioning, America was used as a live-fire target and sunk in 2005. Kitty Hawk, the last of the class to remain in active service, was finally decommissioned in 2009, marking the end of a transformative chapter in carrier design.

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