The U.S. Navy is facing a critical shortage of operational aircraft carriers. The Iran War The military’s ties to the sea are particularly strong at the moment. A total of four aircraft carriers will soon be canceled. The USS Gerald R. Ford and the USS John C. Stennis are not operational. The USS Harry S. Truman (CVN-75) is undergoing an overhaul.

US aircraft carrier maintenance work delayed by 14 months

This is particularly problematic USS John C. Stennis (CVN-74) whose major general overhaul, the “Refueling and Complex Overhaul” (RCOH), is currently running significantly off schedule. The completion of the overhaul was postponed from August 2025 to October 2026, a delay of 14 months. The causes are a lack of personnel and a delay in materials. A steam turbine train on the USS John C. Stennis is more damaged than originally assumed, according to the report from “19fortyfive”.

The Navy had to budget an additional $483.1 million for this. Even after the USS John C. Stennis returns to duty, the billing for the major overhaul will continue into fiscal year 2027, the report says.

Important facts about the US aircraft carrier shortage

• Navy is at risk of missing the legal minimum of 11 aircraft carriers in service by 2026
• Delayed overhaul of USS Stennis delays operational capability until at least October 2026
• The USS Gerald R. Ford is currently undergoing repairs on the island of Crete.
• The repair of the USS Harry S. Truman is not scheduled to be completed until January 2031.
• The USS Nimitz is scheduled to be decommissioned by March 2027 at the latest.
• Industry and staff shortages make future maintenance delays likely.

At the same time, another carrier is starting the shipyard phase. The USS Harry S. Truman (CVN-75) is scheduled to begin repairs in June 2026 – before the Stennis is available again. The Truman’s overhaul is scheduled for January 2031 and is further complicated by a collision in February 2025.

As early as 2024, there was a phase without US aircraft carriers in the Pacific because several ships were being relocated or maintained at the same time.

Maintenance on the USS George Washington was also delayed

In addition to the Truman, the Stennis and the Nimitz, the USS Gerald R. Ford (CVN-78) is a problem aircraft carrier. The USS Gerald R. Ford (CVN-78) was in Iran as part of “Operation Epic Fury”, led by Donald Trump, in use for more than 300 days. She had to be taken out of service after a fire on board in which hundreds of sailors lost their berths and is on the island of Crete for repairs. At the same time, the USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN-72) is also operating in the Iran War.

The US Navy’s problems are structural. The overhaul of the USS George Washington (CVN-73) was already marked by massive delays. The missions of the USS George Washington are also said to have taken too long. The living conditions for the crew had previously been catastrophic, the report says.