American rap, sleeping hunters and dollars: visit of the aircraft carrier in Trieste #video

Photo: Aleksander Kolednik

Yesterday, the American aircraft carrier USS Gerald R. Ford, the largest, most expensive and most modern military ship in history, arrived in the Gulf of Trieste. She also crossed the Slovenian sea into Italian territorial waters near Trieste, where she will be anchored until Thursday. While most of the approximately 4,200 members were excitedly heading for shore after several weeks of non-stop sailing, we had the opportunity to sail in the opposite direction and visit this most stunning warship in the world.

Sailing to the aircraft carrier named according to the 38th president of the USA, Gerald Ford, who served in the US Navy during World War II, it lasted just under half an hour. Already on the way to the aircraft carrier, it cannot be overlooked; the ship in the middle of the Gulf of Trieste grew bigger and bigger before our eyes. We were approaching a vessel of extraordinary dimensions – the USS Gerald R. Ford is 337 meters long, with a height of 74 meters it is higher than the Ljubljana skyscraper, the upper deck is 76 meters wide. The ship can transport 50 to 60 aircraft at the same time.

Loud rap music, great atmosphere, Trieste innkeepers shaking hands

Upon arrival at the aircraft carrier, we met mainly many members of the US Navy, who in a relaxed atmosphere and with loud music were waiting for the ship to bring them to land, where they were last at the end of August in Antalya, Turkey. Many hoteliers, traders and, of course, restaurateurs are looking forward to their arrival, who hand out leaflets with invitations to their bar to American guests upon their arrival at the port. Loud rap music blared at the exit of the ship, and electronic in the hangar, and the crew members were visibly happy to get out. Our interlocutors emphasized that they most want to see Venice. Among the trips offered to them is the Slovenian Bled.

The excitement over a break on land is understandable. The aircraft carrier is hard at work. Most of them work a 16-hour workday, leaving only six to eight hours at most for sleep. In their free time, they rest, play cards, board games, many of them also study for various exams and the like.

Despite the departure of the sailors to land, the rules are clear: enough crew members must remain on the ship so that the aircraft carrier can, of course, get underway at a moment’s notice. In this case, the rest of the crew members would be brought on board from the land by helicopters.

Photo: Aleksander Kolednik

Photo: Gregor Pavšič

“The best part of my job is working with this exceptional team, who are very dedicated to their work. We are all together like one big family. On the other hand, it is difficult on the ship, especially because of the long absence from family and loved ones,” emphasized the ship’s commander Burgess.

About 20 percent of the ship’s crew are women. Among them is Kimberly. Its main task is to manage the state-of-the-art systems used in the take-off and landing of aircraft. She described her job as very demanding, as planes often take off and land throughout the day. Like most of the other crew members, she wants to see Venice in the next few days.
Photo: Gregor Pavšič

The crew members are mostly young

The USS Gerald R. Ford is the third aircraft carrier after the USS George HW Bush and the USS Harry S. Truman to enter the Mediterranean Sea after the start of the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Admiral Erik Eslich denied that the ship’s presence in the Gulf of Trieste was in any way connected to the events in Ukraine.

As he said, this visit had been planned for a long time, and the task of the aircraft carrier, which sailed into the Mediterranean Sea at the beginning of June and also stopped in Split, Croatia at that time, was to carry out training, exercises and operations, with which they want to demonstrate their commitment to the NATO alliance and to ensuring security and stability in the region.

Jailon is also in charge of operating the catapults and aircraft arrest systems. His working days are 16 hours a day. In their spare time, he says, crew members play cards or otherwise socialize, and many also study and read literature to advance to a higher rank.
Photo: Gregor Pavšič

The captain of the ship, Rick Burgess, emphasized that the crew members are mostly young and driven people, with whom he is pleased to work. Most stay on the ship for two to five years, some who perform more demanding tasks that require more experience, as long as seven.

“The best part of my job is working with this exceptional team, who are very dedicated to their work. We are all together like one big family. On the other hand, it is difficult on the ship, especially because of the long absence from family and loved ones,” emphasized the ship’s commander Burgess.

“The ship has 27 new systems that we are testing and familiarizing with during this first mission. All systems are working perfectly, I am satisfied,” explained the ship’s commander on the flight deck.

“The biggest and the baddest”

The Americans are rather proud of their new largest aircraft carrier, which is actually just the beginning of a new generation of such warships. “The biggest and the baddest”, they call it. They also used this slogan on T-shirts and sweatshirts, which are sold both to crew members and to the rare guests on deck. The means of payment is exclusively the US dollar. Euros would come in handy when visiting Italy, but at least on deck the good old dollar remains law.

Photo – interesting glimpses from the ship USS Gerald R. Ford

A new generation to succeed the iconic Nimitz-class aircraft carriers

Construction of the aircraft carrier began in August 2005, and she was christened in November 2013. She was handed over to the Navy in 2017, which was two years later than planned. The development of the ship cost 4.7, and the construction cost 12.8 billion dollars. Her first mission began last October, and in May this year she sailed off the coast of Norway for NATO exercises, angering the Russians.

In the fleet of the US Navy, it succeeded the aircraft carrier USS Enterprise, which had previously been active for 51 years. Thus, she became the largest aircraft carrier in the world, and at the same time the largest military ship of all time. It is powered by two nuclear reactors, which will need to be refueled for the first time only after 25 years of use. At sea, the aircraft carrier exceeds speeds of 30 knots or 56 kilometers per hour.

The two reactors generate heat, which creates high-pressure steam. This steam then drives the drive turbines, which provide the necessary power to turn the propellers. The remaining electricity is produced by additional turbines. When the steam cools and condenses into water, the whole process starts again.

A revolutionary take-off and landing system

Classic catapults are no longer used to take off from the ship’s deck, which until today was the traditional way to quickly accelerate the aircraft on board and achieve the appropriate take-off speed. Catapults have used a steam-based system for more than 60 years, and the new Gerald R. Ford aircraft carrier uses an electromagnetic aircraft launch system (EMALS). Compared to the classic catapult, the Americans describe it as much less complicated to operate and maintain. The take-off thrust energy of such a system is also greater than before. The new system is more secure, requires fewer people to manage it, and will save billions of dollars in the long run.

“But the key thing is that we got rid of all the old steam. It was piped all over the ship, so it was very hot inside and less comfortable than it is today,” explained Burgess.

The ship also has a new system for landing and decelerating aircraft. Controlled deceleration is provided by a system of electric motors and systems for the recovery of kinetic energy, which have replaced the previous system based on hydraulics.

Each propeller weighs 30 tons

Because the USS Gerald R. Ford is so bulky, other elements of the ship are also of extraordinary dimensions. The propellers are absolutely stunning. The ship has four. Each weighs 30 tons and has a diameter of 6.4 meters. They are made of bronze, and their installation took more than ten months.

The USS Gerald R. Ford has numerous defense systems for close and long range combat. RIM-162 Evolved Sea Sparrow surface-to-air missiles and RIM-116 surface-to-air missiles can be fired from the deck. The Phalanx weapon system is capable of automatically detecting, targeting and destroying most airborne threats – from aircraft and missiles to aircraft carriers. USS Gerald R. Ford is also equipped with AN/SPY-3 X and AN/SPY-4 S-Band and DBR radars.