Navy Aircraft Carrier 'Armed' With F-35C Fighters Will Deploy Near China's Doorstep

Summary and Key Points: The USS George Washington (CVN-73) has arrived in California after a voyage from Norfolk, Virginia, and will conduct a "hull swap" with the USS Ronald Reagan (CVN-76), which has been based in Japan since 2015.

-The USS George Washington, fresh from a prolonged Refueling and Complex Overhaul, will return to Japan, accompanied by Carrier Air Wing Five and a squadron of F-35C Lightning II fighters. The USS Ronald Reagan will head to Bremerton, Washington, for maintenance.

-The George Washington's overhaul faced significant delays due to COVID-19 and other issues, extending the process to nearly six years.

USS George Washington Will Head to Japan With F-35 Lightning IIs

The United States Navy's Nimitz-class nuclear-powered aircraft carrier USS George Washington (CVN-73) arrived last week at Naval Air Station North Island, California, after completing a "round-the-horn" voyage from Norfolk, Virginia. The carrier had departed Norfolk in late April, and then took part in a series of U.S. Southern Command exercises, and conducted planned port calls in Brazil, Chile, and Peru.

In May 2023, CVN-73 was returned to the U.S. Navy after completing her four-year Refueling and Complex Overhaul (RCOH) that began in August 2017.

While in California, the supercarrier – one of the ten Nimitz class – will conduct a "hull swap" operation with her sister ship USS Ronald Reagan (CVN-76), which had been forward-deployed to Japan since 2015. USS George Washington will now return to Japan, and it was in 2008 that the warship became the first nuclear-powered aircraft to be forward-deployed at Naval Base Yokosuka.

During the scheduled weeks-long hull swap, hundreds of Japan-based sailors on CVN-76 will transfer to CVN-73 and make the crossing across the Pacific back to Yokosuka. USS Ronald Reagan will then head to Bremerton, Washington, where the carrier will undergo maintenance before beginning her next deployment.

F-35 Air Wing To Deploy With CVN-73

Among those transferring from USS Ronald Reagan are the sailors and aviators of Carrier Air Wing Five (CVW-5), which will be joined by a squadron of the Lockheed Martin F-35C Lightning II – the fifth-generation carrier-based variant of the Joint Strike Fighter.

The U.S. Navy announced on Monday that "Strike Fighter Squadron (VFA) 147 and Fleet Logistics Multi-Mission Squadron (VRM) 30, Detachment Forward Deployed Naval Forces (FDNF) will forward deploy to Iwakuni, Japan."

The sea service added that the squadrons will join the other aircraft of CVW-5, while "The F-35C Lightning II aircraft of VFA 147 will replace the F/A-18 Hornets of VFA 115, while the CMV-22B Osprey aircraft of VRM 30, Det FDNF will replace the C-2A Greyhound aircraft of the Fleet Logistics Squadron (VRC) 30 detachment previously supporting CVW 5 and Carrier Strike Group (CSG) 5."

Behind Schedule – But Better Late Than Never

USS George Washington will arrive back in Japan later than expected following the RCOH at HII's Newport News Shipbuilding in Virginia. The normally four-year-long maintenance period stretched to just short of six years due to a number of factors, including supply chain issues and workforce problems that were exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic, USNI News reported. USS George Washington began the RCOH period on Aug. 4, 2017, and was only redelivered to the U.S. Navy on May 25, 2023.

During the RCOH, the sea service also conducted an extensive quality of life study that revealed sailors living aboard the carrier had some of the toughest living conditions in the Department of Defense (DoD). The investigation followed the death by suicide of nine of the carrier's sailors from 2017 to 2022.

The lengthy delays meant many sailors assigned to the carrier didn't get to do what they signed up for – namely to go to sea and see the world. That has certainly changed since April, and soon the sailors will be deployed from Japan.

"Sailors join the Navy ... to be part of something bigger than themselves," Command Master Chief Randy Swanson told KPBS.com. "Also, to go see the world and to do their job."

Author Experience and Expertise: Peter Suciu

Peter Suciu is a Michigan-based writer. He has contributed to more than four dozen magazines, newspapers, and websites with over 3,200 published pieces over a twenty-year career in journalism. He regularly writes about military hardware, firearms history, cybersecurity, politics, and international affairs. Peter is also a Contributing Writer for Forbes and Clearance Jobs. You can follow him on Twitter: @PeterSuciu. You can email the author: Editor@nationalinterest.org.

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