It seems to me there was always a small carrier berthed at Rota, Spain; whenever we put in there during the eighties and nineties.
usually I read little snippets about ships, deployed by the various nations, when there's a crisis somewhere .... don't think I've ever read where Spain parked a carrier off shore .... that's a huge expenditure for a country like Spain .... even the Brits are beaching their carriers
So....the US still has eight Essex-class carriers operational (see left column of chart)? I can only find four that have been preserved and none operational. OK...chart is a bold-faced lie inaccurate. US has 10 operational carriers with three more under construction. (I'm not sure that the USS Gerald Ford CVN-78 launched on it's Nov 9 schedule or not - if so, then 11 op and 2 under const.) ETA: Ford was christened on the 9th, not launched...so back to 10 and 3. Big difference from 19 operational boats depicted in the graphic.
Big ships make big targets--remember the Exorcet sinking the British carrier during the Falkland problems. They are made of steel and heavier than water.
I'm thinking the smaller carriers on the left are the "gator freighters", used for helos and Harriers. Not true aircraft carriers, per se......so more of a stretch of the truth, than an inaccuracy or outright lie. I think the Gerald Ford is scheduled to join the fleet in 2015, if I remember correctly. Personally, I'm hoping the Navy doesn't take too long to build the next two, as I'd like to be around to see the new USS Enterprise join the fleet. The old girl they retired last year (CVN-65) was my "alma mater".
Don't forget, the Chinese carrier transforms into a giant robot with 400 drone ships just in case Godzilla ever comes back.
This just shows what suckers we have been as a nation. We have been culturally convinced to build up this massive military at great public expense, and sacrifice the lives of Americans on the battlefields just to fulfill the economic whims of TPTB. I was in for 27 years, so I feel I can say this without it being insulting to servicemen and women, but the military has been relegated to the role of constant but variably productive cash cow for TPTB.
That chart has missed the Canuks. They bought Crap from England , One burnt to a crisp before making it to the Shores of North America ..& still we paid the crown her bob's. I hear they are now making Ice ships .. mostly submerged .