Picture a city of nearly 5,000 people, floating in the open ocean, capable of deploying an entire air force anywhere on the planet within hours. It produces its own fresh water, runs its own hospital, ...

“Ski-jump” carriers are smaller and weaker than catapult-equipped ones—but as recent events involving the president show, catapults are far from a silver bullet for effective carrier operations.

The modern aircraft carrier is a vessel unlike anything that's ever sailed the seas. From their advanced nuclear power plants to their massive crews and wide-ranging combat capabilities, there are a ...