How the US Navy Is Planning to Scrap the USS Nimitz Next Year

The USS Nimitz’ decommissioning is a technically impressive, and equally somber, process.

The USS Nimitz (CVN-68) is a giant of the high seas and a legend of modern naval military history. The mighty warship, first introduced 50 years ago, is currently on its final deployment and is scheduled to be decommissioned in 2026.

Many are wondering what precisely occurs during the decommissioning process for a nuclear-powered aircraft carrier. As one might expect, this is a convoluted process that is highly technical, time-consuming, and expensive, and one that will take multiple years to complete.

Once the Nimitz‘ decommissioning is finalized, the US Navy will be reduced to ten aircraft carriers, with the new Gerald R. Ford-class carriers coming online over the next decade to bring the Navy back up to strength. Until these carriers arrive, the Navy, which has relied disproportionately on the carrier as its primary power projection platform, will have some dangerous strategic gaps in its force structure until the Nimitz’ replacement can be deployed.

How to Take Apart a Nuclear Aircraft Carrier

Decommissioning a nuclear-powered aircraft carrier involves safely neutralizing radioactive components while maximizing recycling. The US Navy, drawing from its experience in decommissioning nuclear-powered submarines, has refined this decommissioning process for their carriers, too. In 2017, it successfully decommissioned the former USS Enterprise (CVN-65), a unique nuclear-powered aircraft carrier that entered service in 1961. That decommissioning process was overseen by the Naval Sea Systems Command (NAVSEA) and the new CVN Inactivation and Disposal Program Office (PMS 368), established in 2024 to streamline future retirements, including Nimitz-class vessels. 

Key options include naval shipyard or full commercial dismantlement. For Enterprise, the Navy selected commercial disposal in 2025, awarding a $536 million contract to NorthStar Maritime Dismantlement Services for work in Mobile, Ala. This approach, estimated at five years and $554 to $696 million, avoids overburdening public shipyards and leverages private expertise.

The Decommissioning Process in Five Steps 

The decommissioning process unfolds in five main phases:

1. Deactivation and Ceremony: Following its final deployment, the USS Nimitz will return to Naval Station Norfolk in 2026 for a formal decommissioning ceremony, marking its removal from active service. Crews will offload equipment, munitions, and aviation assets.
2. Nuclear Defueling: The ship then moves to Huntington Ingalls Industries-Newport News Shipbuilding in Newport News, Va. for defueling its two A4W reactors. This entails a 30-month process removing spent fuel for secure storage or reprocessing. This step, critical for safety, involves specialized teams under Naval Reactors oversight.
3. Inactivation: After its nuclear defueling, the carrier is inactivated for the final time; systems are shut down, hazardous materials removed, and the hull prepared for towing. For Nimitz, this includes securing propulsion spaces.
4. Dismantling and Disposal: The preferred commercial option involves cutting the ship into sections. Non-nuclear parts are recycled for steel and metals, while reactor compartments are packaged as low-level radioactive waste and transported to licensed sites like Hanford, Wash. While the Enterprise had eight separate nuclear reactors, Nimitz has only two, simplifying handling and potentially reducing timelines. 
5. Final Recycling: Usable components are salvaged, with the rest disposed per the guidelines of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

Why Can’t the Nimitz Survive as a Museum Ship?

Despite its iconic status among naval enthusiasts, the US Navy cannot turn the Nimitz into a museum ship. This is in large part because of the ship’s nuclear reactors, which severely complicate any efforts to preserve the beautiful boat for public viewing.

The physical removal of the reactors from the Nimitz is a one-way process that renders the ship un-seaworthy. From an engineering perspective, in order to remove the reactors, it is necessary to cut into the carrier’s hull, a process that destroys its structural integrity and makes it unsafe to return to the water.

Even if the ship could somehow be stabilized, a second problem is residual radiation from the reactors, which could endanger future visitors to the ship. Indeed, a large part of the ship’s scrapping cost comes from ensuring that scrapyard workers are not unnecessarily exposed to dangerous radiation. Removing that radiation enough to open the ship to tourists in some form would be more expensive still.

Put together, these two costs make it virtually impossible to preserve the Nimitz, dooming her to the scrapyard.

A Timeline of the Nimitz’ Destruction

USS Nimitz’ end-of-life timeline begins with decommissioning scheduled for May 2026, followed by defueling starting mid-2026 at Newport News. The ship’s full dismantlement could span five to 10 years, with completion by the early 2030s, depending on the chosen option. The costs of inactivating the carrier will be as high as $1 billion, due to regulatory hurdles and the need to align Naval Reactors and the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.

Environmentally, the process complies with the National Environmental Policy Act, requiring an Environmental Impact Statement to assess radioactive waste transport and disposal risks. Hanford’s burial site ensures containment, minimizing contamination. Economically, commercial operations save taxpayer dollars and boost recycling industries, though initial investments for facilities are substantial.

The USS Nimitz’ decommissioning is a technically impressive, and equally somber, process. It represents the final end of an iconic warship that is set to be replaced by the bigger, more expensive, and more advanced USS John F. Kennedy, the newest Ford-class aircraft carrier. Nimitz will forever be remembered as the great carrier of its day. Considering the carrier’s special place in Navy history, it is only too bad that it could not have been transformed into a museum instead.

About the Author: Brandon J. Weichert

Brandon J. Weichert is a senior national security editor at The National Interest. Recently, Weichert became the host of The National Security Hour on America Outloud News and iHeartRadio, where he discusses national security policy every Wednesday at 8pm Eastern. He is also a contributor at Popular Mechanics and has consulted regularly with various government institutions and private organizations on geopolitical issues. Weichert’s writings have appeared in multiple publications, including The Washington Times, National Review, The American Spectator, MSN, The Asia Times, and others. His books include Winning Space: How America Remains a Superpower, Biohacked: China’s Race to Control Life, and The Shadow War: Iran’s Quest for Supremacy. His newest book, A Disaster of Our Own Making: How the West Lost Ukraine is available for purchase wherever books are sold. He can be followed via Twitter @WeTheBrandon.

Image: Wikimedia Commons.