An autonomous air wing on an autonomous deck, for the United States Navy.
Phase 7 · 2033+Concept design
Displacement
≈ 100,000 t
Reactors
2 × 700 MWt
Fuel burn
≈ 61 g / hr at full power
Crew aboard
0
I · Blueprint
Side elevation, live systems
01Propellers × 4, 5-bladedPropulsion
02Shafts × 4Propulsion
03Advanced arresting gearStructure
04Propulsion motors × 4Propulsion
05Hangar, 2 bays — air wingMission systems
06Turbine-generatorsPower
07Flight deck & sponsonsStructure
08Reactor plant 1Power
09Aircraft elevators × 3Mission systems
10Reactor plant 2Power
11Hull — nuclear-hardened, compartmentedStructure
12Island & integrated sensor towerStructure
13Electromagnetic catapults × 4Mission systems
14Catapult energy storage, 4 × 121 MJPower
15Weapons elevators × 11Mission systems
16Magazines, fore and aftMission systems
17Switchboards & common busPower
18Autonomy coreMission systems
19Bulbous bowStructure
20Double bottom & tanksStructure
21Rudders & steering gearPropulsion
II · Power & drivetrain
Two reactors, one all-electric ship.
Both reactor plants feed a common electrical bus. Propulsion, catapults, sensors and the air wing's charging all draw from the same power, allocated by the ship's autonomy core.
Twin reactor plants on one bus — rotating view
Two identical pressurized-water plants, each a reactor vessel, steam generator and coolant pump feeding a turbo-generator over its condenser, sit either side of the ship’s main bus (dashed rails). Four 65 MW propulsion motors and the catapult and radar energy stores all draw from the same bus.
04Condensers — sea-water cooled, under each turbine
05Main bus — 13.8 kV, both plants in parallel, ≈ 490 MWe
06Propulsion motors — 4 × 65 MW, one per shaft
07Catapult energy stores — 4 × 121 MJ flywheel banks
08Sensor and mission loads — radars, lasers, aircraft charging
Propeller — 5 blades
Power plant2 reactors, 700 MWt each
Shaft output≈ 260 MW, 4 shafts, from a 490 MWe bus
FuelHighly enriched uranium, ≈ 93% U-235
Consumption≈ 61 g fissile / hr at full power
Metal content≈ 90% of lightship
Naked drivetrain — energy to motion
III · Armament
The air wing is the weapon. The ship guards itself.
Weapons ride electromagnetic elevators from magazines below the waterline to the flight deck, and four electromagnetic catapults put them in the air. Close in, the ship defends itself in layers: Sea Sparrow, rolling-airframe missiles, a hovering decoy, a laser, 25 mm guns and Phalanx. With no one aboard, launchers and guns are refilled in port or at replenishment. Self-defense runs in a mode a person has approved; every other release stays with a person.
Launcher or mountCountCells or roundsRange classReload
Weapons elevators and catapults (the air wing’s path)11 elevators; 4 catapults24,000 lb per lift at 150 ft a minuteAir wing: short to longAmmunition ship alongside: about 541,000 lb in one day (2022)
Mk 29 launcher, Evolved Sea Sparrow28 cells, one missile eachShort to medium (about 50 km class)One canister per cell, in port or at replenishment (no one aboard)
Mk 49 launcher, Rolling Airframe Missile221 cells, one missile eachShort (about 10 km class)One round per cell, in port or at replenishment
Mk 15 Phalanx close-in gun31,550-round drum, about 20 s of fireVery shortDrum refilled in port or at replenishment
Mk 38 25 mm remote gun; .50 cal4; 4Ready box on the mount; belts from cansVery shortBox and cans swapped in port or at replenishment
Mk 53 decoy launcherAt the deck edgeOne sealed canister per decoyDraws a missile awayCanisters swapped in port or at replenishment
Laser, 150–300 kW class (IC design)1No ammunition: power and coolingA few km in clear airDraws under 1 MW from ≈ 490 MWe
Compatible munitions
Air defense
Evolved Sea Sparrow Missile (Mk 29)In service
Rolling Airframe Missile Block 2 (Mk 49)In service
AIM-9X, short-range air-to-airIn service
AIM-120C/D, medium-range air-to-airIn service
AIM-174B, very-long-range air-to-airIn service
AIM-260, next-generation long-range air-to-airIn development
Strike
JDAM guidance-kit bombsIn service
GBU-53/B small glide bombIn service
AGM-154 JSOW stand-off glide weaponIn service
AGM-88E AARGM, anti-radiationIn service
AGM-88G AARGM-ER, extended rangeIn development
Rocket-boosted hypersonic strike missile (after HALO)In development
Collaborative combat aircraft, 4 × 2,500 lb stationsIn development
Anti-ship
AGM-158C LRASM, long rangeIn service
AGM-84 Harpoon and SLAM-ERIn service
Anti-sub and torpedo
Mk 54 lightweight torpedo, from MH-60R helicoptersIn service
Mk 54 Mod 2In development
SonobuoysIn service
AN/SLQ-25 towed torpedo decoyIn service
Mines
Quickstrike Mk 62/63/65, air-droppedIn service
Quickstrike-ER glide kitIn development
Guns and counter-drone
Mk 15 Phalanx 20 mmIn service
Mk 38 25 mm and .50 calIn service
Mk 53 hovering decoyIn service
APKWS laser-guided rocket, helicoptersIn service
AGM-114 Hellfire and AGM-179 JAGM, helicoptersIn service
Joint Laser Weapon System, 150–300 kWIn development
Systems are named by US Navy designation. Mount positions other than the Mk 29 sponsons are not published and are shown for illustration; sequences follow public descriptions at animation pace, with threat speeds and ranges shortened to fit the frame. Sources and checks are listed in BUILD_NOTES.md.
IV · How it is put together
Superlifts in a dry dock, the island last.
Steel units are welded into superlifts of about 900 to 1,000 t and lowered into the dock by a gantry crane, keel first; the island lands as one 555 t lift. The current carrier took about twelve years from first steel to delivery.
Steel units are welded into superlifts and filled with pipe before lifting.
The first superlifts are lowered into the dry dock to form the bottom.
Shielded plant rooms, machinery and hangar decks are stacked up block by block.
Flight-deck blocks close the hull; the island is lowered on as a single lift.
The dock is flooded, systems are tested alongside, then trials at sea.
I
Units welded into superlifts
II
Keel and double bottom set
III
Plant rooms and hangar rise
IV
Flight deck and island landed
V
Dock flooded, fitted out, trialled
V · Specification
Design specification.
Design values for the autonomous aircraft carrier. Every figure matches the drawings, the power unit and the compute panel on this page.
Length overall
333 m
Flight deck
≈ 1.8 hectares
Displacement
≈ 100,000 t
Air wing
75+ autonomous aircraft
Launch
4 electromagnetic catapults
Power plant
2 reactors, 700 MWt each
Consumption
≈ 61 g fissile / hr at full power
Speed
30+ kn
Core life
50 years
Electric output
≈ 490 MWe, 35% cycle
Shaft output
≈ 260 MW · 4 × 65 MW motors
Bus headroom
≈ 215 MW at full speed
Propulsion · IC design
4 shafts, all-electric
Metal content
≈ 90% of lightship
Crew aboard
0 — remote command
Catapult stores
4 × 121 MJ
Onboard compute
Twelve AI modules in two racks; the flight deck has its own eyes
Modules12 heavy AI modules in 2 mirrored racks (ship navigation & perception 4; flight-deck operations 4; aircraft handling & charging 2; engineering 2) + 4 certified safety controllers; combat systems are separate
AI throughput60,000 TOPS (12 × 5,000, INT8 / FP4 sparse)
Memory12 × 128 GB LPDDR6, 600 GB/s per module
Power draw1.25 kW compute; ≈ 2.6 kW with 80 cameras, 8 lidars and 3 navigation radars — 0.0005% of the 490 MWe plant
Process node2 nm-class SoCs; safety controllers on a mature 16 nm node, 15-year supply; compute is a line-replaceable unit, swapped at mid-life
RedundancyTwo racks in separate hardened compartments. Every sensor is wired to both racks. Each module is primary for its zone and hot standby for its twin in the other rack; either rack alone runs the ship and a reduced flight-deck tempo. A software fault can never drive the carrier outside its certified safe envelope.
Safety channel4 × SIL 3 controllers, two per reactor plant, with their own sensors: reactor-protection channels (neutron flux, coolant pressure and temperature), turbine overspeed trips, shaft encoders, rudder-angle sensors, catapult and arresting-gear interlocks, fire and flood detectors, deck-edge safety lidars and a safety-rated collision radar
Sensors80 cameras (56 visible 4K, 24 thermal) over deck and hull on automotive Ethernet through camera aggregation switches; 8 lidars for deck-edge and aircraft spotting, 3 navigation radars, AIS, 6,000 plant sensors; combat sensors are separate
DrivesMotor drives close their own current loop at 1 kHz; the modules send speed and rudder set-points at 10 Hz
LinkProtected satellite and line-of-sight links to the fleet; the ship’s planning model runs aboard and the air wing’s plans are checked against it
The carrier is a moving airport: the flight-deck modules track every aircraft, tractor and store on 1.8 hectares of deck and plan launches and recoveries to the second. The ship’s own navigation runs as on every IC vessel, in two racks that mirror each other. Weapons and combat sensors are on their own systems, under remote command ashore.
Today vs IC
Today’s carrier beside the IC design
Today · newest carrier classIC design
Reactors2 × pressurized-water reactors, ≈ 700 MWt each (public estimate)2 reactors, 700 MWt each
DriveSteam turbines → reduction gears → 4 shaftsAll-electric: both plants feed one bus, motors turn 4 shafts
ElectricShip-service turbine generators, ≈ 125 MWe per reactor, feed the grid and the electromagnetic catapultsOne 490 MWe bus for propulsion, catapults, sensors and aircraft charging
Propellers4 bronze, ≈ 30 t each4 × 5 blades
People aboard≈ 4,500 across ship, air wing and staff0; the air wing is autonomous
The IC column is the design shown on this page. Sources for the Today column are listed in BUILD_NOTES.md.
Runs on The Brain
The Brain plans the air wing’s sorties and the ship’s track together, mirrors both in the fleet’s digital twin, and re-plans the moment the weather or the mission changes.