Rumbo a Corea

The USS George Washington is the sixth vessel in the Nimitz class of 10 aircraft carriers and the fourth U.S. Navy ship to be named for the nation's first president.

Facts:

• The ship was christened on July 21, 1990, and commissioned July 4, 1992.
• The ship's insignia features a classic silhouette of its namesake, 13 stars representing the original colonies and the crossed flags of freedom, which are all "encircled by an unbroken rope representing the solidarity of the crew."
• The ship's motto is "The Spirit of Freedom," a phrase used by George Washington to describe the mood of the people in a letter during the Revolutionary War.
• The ship was critical to U.S. Navy operations in the Persian Gulf during 1997 and 2000, when it spent two six-month tours in the region.
• On Aug. 8, the George Washington became the first American aircraft carrier to visit Vietnam since the Vietnam War when it stopped off the coast of Da Nang City to celebrate the 15th anniversary of normalized U.S.-Vietnam diplomatic relations.

Figures:

• 2 -- Anchors, each weighing approximately 30 tons.
• 4 -- Propellers, each 22 feet in diameter, with five blades and weighing 66,000 pounds.
• 4.5 -- Acres of flight deck area (1,092 feet by 275 feet).
• 2,000 -- Telephones on board.
• 6,250 -- Crew accommodations.
• 18,000 -- Meals served daily.
• 30,000 -- Lighting fixtures.
• 60,000 -- Tons of structural steel.
• 400,000 -- Gallons of daily capacity of fresh water distilling plants, enough to service 200,000 homes.