Record #00340Transport archive
Largest Nuclear-Powered Warship
USS Gerald R. Ford entered service on 22 July 2017. Guinness identifies it as the world's largest warship at over 100,000 tons full-load displacement, while the US Department of Energy confirms its nuclear propulsion.
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NOT TO SCALE
Current Record
over100,000tons
Current record value
- Location
- Naval Station Norfolk, Virginia (commissioning); Newport News, Virginia (construction) · Norfolk, Virginia · United States
- Start date
- 2017-07-22
- Record status
- VerifiedView verification details ↗Report an issue
Overview
Archive NoteThe lead Ford-class carrier is about 333 metres long and 78 metres wide. Its two nuclear reactors power propulsion systems, and it uses electromagnetic aircraft launch equipment. The ship was commissioned at Naval Station Norfolk on 22 July 2017; Newport News is its construction city, not the commissioning venue.
Guinness identifies it as the world's largest warship, while the US Naval Nuclear Propulsion Program documents its reactors and a combat-load displacement of 99,500 tons. The metric here is the Guinness full-load figure of over 100,000 tons, not a fabricated exact value.
Record history
1 Milestones- over 100,000 tonsUSS Gerald R. Ford (CVN-78)Naval Station Norfolk, Virginia (commissioning); Newport News, Virginia (construction)Current Record
Sources
Evidence & ReferencesVerification basis and limitations
VerifiedThe record conclusion has sufficient verification support.
Basis: direct confirmation by an authority
Guinness identifies USS Gerald R. Ford as the largest warship and the U.S. Department of Energy documents its nuclear propulsion. The U.S. Navy's 20 July 2017 announcement confirms that the CVN-78 commissioning ceremony took place at Naval Station Norfolk on 22 July 2017, correcting Guinness's CVN-79 typo.
- Verification assessment
- 2026-11-04
- Last editorial review
- 2026-11-04
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