‘The vertical fortress’: How USS Abraham Lincoln uses multiple decks to launch fighter jets
The USS Abraham Lincoln uses an 18-deck structure to launch jets. Nuclear reactors generate steam below, while elevators lift aircraft from the hangar to the 4.5-acre flight deck for rapid catapult launches.
A towering steel fortress
A Nimitz-class carrier features roughly 18 decks, functioning as a vertical city to support the continuous operation of more than 70 aircraft.
Power from the deep hull
Deep below the waterline, two A4W nuclear reactors heat water to generate the highly pressurised steam required for the ship's four launch catapults.
The maintenance hub
The hangar deck occupies the middle levels, providing a vast enclosed space where mechanics repair, arm, and prepare fighter jets before flight.
Lifting jets to the surface
Four high-speed deck elevators, each capable of lifting up to 130,000 pounds, transport fully armed fighter jets from the hangar to the flight deck.
The primary runway
The uppermost flight deck spans 4.5 acres, giving crews the exact space needed to simultaneously launch and recover multiple combat aircraft.
Eyes in the sky
Towering above the flight deck is the 'island', where Primary Flight Control monitors the airspace and orchestrates every launch and landing.
A three-second launch
Using the steam piped up from the lower decks, the catapults propel a 20,000-kilogramme fighter jet to 265 km/h in just three seconds.
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