US Navy Aerographer's Mate Third Class David T. Griffin, Operations Department, takes a reading from the handheld Electric Psychrometer which determines the outdoor air temperature onboard the Nimitz Class Aircraft Carrier, USS JOHN C. STENNIS (CVN-74). The USS JOHN C. STENNIS is deployed in the Persian Gulf in support of the Southwest Asia build-up. (Officially released by COMFIFTHFLT Public Affairs)

Aircraft carriers are warships that act as airbases for carrier-based aircraft. In the United States Navy, these consist of ships commissioned with hull classification symbols CV (aircraft carrier), CVA (attack aircraft carrier), CVB (large aircraft carrier), CVL (light aircraft carrier), CVN (aircraft carrier (nuclear propulsion) and CVAN (attack aircraft carrier (nuclear propulsion). The first aircraft carrier commissioned into the United States Navy was USS Langley (CV-1) on 20 March 1922.