aircraft carriers

Aircraft carriers are widely recognized as prominent signifiers of United States military power and the country's foreign policy priorities.

Typically three of the 11 United States Navy aircraft carriers are deployed at sea at any given time.

Aircraft carriers typically embark thousands of sailors and carry dozens of warplanes.

Naval vessels, including guided-missile destroyers and aircraft carriers, are employed to detect, interdict, or target suspected maritime drug-smuggling vessels.

Amphibious assault ships are generally faster than aircraft carriers and offer greater operational flexibility.

Aircraft carriers enable their embarked warplanes to strike targets deep inside another country, which makes carriers useful for projecting power and deterring or pressuring other states.

Aircraft carriers enable a nation to project air power far from its shores because they carry warplanes capable of striking targets deep inside other countries.

Aircraft carriers are primarily designed for power projection against state military forces and can be less well suited for countering dispersed, small-boat maritime criminal operations such as drug-trafficking networks.