USS Dwight D. Eisenhower returns to service after carrier overhaul

The US-flagged USS Dwight D. Eisenhower has returned to active status after completing a planned incremental availability overhaul and sea trials at Norfolk Naval Shipyard, restoring the US Navy’s second-oldest aircraft carrier to deployment readiness. The Nimitz-class carrier entered maintenance in January 2025 for repair, overhaul, inspection and modernisation work covering propulsion and launch systems. The US Navy said more than 4,000 personnel worked daily on the project, which included inspection of engine turbine shafts and aircraft catapult systems. It added that the work finished ahead of schedule after planning efficiencies reduced labour requirements.

Commander Jason Downs, project superintendent, said: “This team also meticulously managed to execute the required new work under budget, saving 2,000 resource days.” The US Navy said the carrier would return to its homeport at Naval Station Norfolk and was now available for deployment, although its next mission has not been announced. USS Dwight D. Eisenhower last deployed in October 2023 to the Middle East, where it led US naval operations in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden following attacks on military and commercial shipping.

During that deployment, the carrier’s air wing flew more than 30,000 hours and the ship sailed about 88,510 km. The US Navy has twice delayed retirement plans for the 1977-built vessel, which is now expected to remain in service into the early 2030s.