Which Is The Most Advanced Aircraft Carrier In The World?

It's safe to say that nearly aircraft carrier in operation today is inherently advanced. We're long past the days when wooden platforms were strapped to the tops of ships so a nervous pilot could somehow land. Today most carriers are floating airbases that can often circumnavigate the globe without refueling, which as a base level of technology, is pretty advanced. But even among them, the USS Gerald Ford is by far the most technologically advanced aircraft carrier around. And it better be, because it cost $13 billion.

Commissioned in 2017, it's the first of the new Ford-class carriers intended to gradually phase out the Nimitz carriers that have been serving the U.S. for decades. Upon first glance, it would be difficult to tell the difference between the two classes of carriers. They both use two nuclear reactors and can reach the same speeds (of around 30 knots), but you'd notice about 30 more aircraft on the Ford, and possibly a bit fewer personnel, due to the more advanced systems. Those systems are where the true differences are. 

The USS Ford carrier features an electromagnetic aircraft launch system (as opposed to steam-driven catapults), and an advanced arresting gear instead of the old hydraulic versions, all of which is expected to increase sorties by 33 percent, up to 160 per day outside of wartime conditions. Part of those sorties includes the addition of unmanned aircraft, as well as E-2D Advanced Hawkeyes, which provide early warnings with a 360-degree radar.

But perhaps the most advanced aspect is that the USS Ford was constructed to adapt to future weapon technologies currently being explored, including the electromagnetic railgun, lasers to replace some existing missile systems, and the Naval Integrated Fire Control Counter Air (NIFCCA), an advanced radar system which could potentially detect and destroy incoming enemy missiles from beyond the horizon.

It's all why the Navy dubbed the USS Ford the "most capable, adaptable, and lethal combat platform in the world." The flight deck is a bit larger as well, so it's also not coincidentally the biggest aircraft carrier, too.