America class amphibious assault ship

USS America (LHA-6) during trials in 2013
Class overview
Builders:	Huntington Ingalls Industries Ingalls Shipbuilding Division
Operators:	United States Navy
Preceded by:	Wasp class
Cost:	US$10.094 billion - initial program cost for 3 ships ($3.4B/unitFY15)
Built:	2008–
Building:	1
Planned:	11
Completed:	1
Active:	1
General characteristics
Type:	Amphibious assault ship
Displacement:	44,971 long tons (45,693 t) full load
Length:	844 ft (257 m)
Beam:	106 ft (32 m)
Propulsion:	Two gas turbines, two shafts, with 70,000 bhp (52,000 kW) total, Two 5,000 hp (3,700 kW) auxiliary propulsion engines.
Speed:	20 knots (37 km/h; 23 mph) plus
Complement:	65 officers, 994 enlisted 1,687 Marines
Sensors and processing systems:	AN/SPQ-9B fire control radar AN/SPS-48G air search radar
Electronic warfare & decoys:	AN/SLQ-32B(V)2 two Mk53 Nulka decoy launchers
Armament:	Two Rolling Airframe Missile launchers two Evolved Sea Sparrow Missile launchers two Phalanx CIWS seven dual .50 caliber machine guns
Aircraft carried:	AV-8B Harrier II F-35B Lightning II MV-22B Osprey CH-53E Super Stallion or CH-53K King Stallion UH-1Y Venom AH-1Z Viper MH-60S Knighthawk
Aviation facilities:	Hangar deck

The America-class amphibious assault ships (formerly the LHA(R) class) of the U.S. Navy are designed to put ashore a Marine Expeditionary Unit using helicopters and MV-22B Osprey V/STOL transport aircraft, supported by AV-8B Harrier II or F-35 Lightning II V/STOL aircraft and various attack helicopters. The first of these warships was commissioned by the U.S. Navy in 2014 to replace USS Peleliu of the Tarawa class; as many as eleven will be built. The design of the America class is based on that of USS Makin Island, the last ship of the Wasp class, but the "Flight 0" ships of the America class will not have well decks, and they have smaller on-board hospitals in order to give more space for aviation uses.

Although they only carry helicopters and V/STOL aircraft, USS America, with a displacement of about 45,000 long tons (46,000 t), is similar in size to the French Charles de Gaulle and the Indian Vikramaditya fixed-wing aircraft carriers. Also, while more than 120 feet (37 m) shorter, they are of comparable displacement to the former US Navy Midway-class aircraft carriers.

USS America can be used as a small aircraft carrier with a squadron of jet fighters plus several multipurpose helicopters, such as the MH-60 Seahawk. It can carry about 20 AV-8Bs, F-35Bs, or a mixture of the two, but the future ships of this class, starting with USS Bougainville (LHA-8), will have smaller aircraft hangars to leave room for larger amphibious warfare well decks.