Sat, Mar 07, 2020, 10:51:00
Aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt carries fighter jets and its escort, a cruiser, is armed with advanced weaponry.

The giant vessel arrived in Vietnam’s central city of Da Nang for a five-day visit on Thursday,
the second U.S. aircraft carrier to visit Vietnam in two years.

It docked at Tien Sa Port along with cruiser USS Bunker Hill and a destroyer.
The carrier has 5,000 crew members while the other two have a total of 1,500.
The Theodore Roosevelt is a Nimitz-class nuclear-powered carrier, 1,092 feet (332.8 meters)
long and with a displacement of 117,000 tons and capacity to carry 90 aircraft.

Fighter aircraft on the USS Theodore Roosevelt. The aircraft carrier is armed with three Phalanx CIWS,
two RIM-7 Sea Sparrow weapons systems against airborne threats such as
anti-ship missiles and aircraft, and two RIM-116 infrared surface-to-air missiles.

There are four squadrons of the Boeing F/A-18E and F/A-18F Super Hornet twin-engine,
multirole fighter aircraft, one squadron of Boeing EA-18G Growler electronic warfare aircraft,
two squadrons of Sikorsky SH-60/MH-60 Seahawk multi-mission helicopters,
one squadron of Northrop Grumman E-2 Hawkeye, an early warning aircraft,
and one squadron of Grumman C-2 Greyhound cargo aircraft.

The Bunker Hill is a Ticonderoga-class guided missile cruiser, 567 feet (173 meters)
long and with a displacement of 9,300 tons.

The cruiser is equipped with a number of modern weapons, including
the Mark 54 Lightweight Torpedo, a standard 12.75 inch (324 mm)
anti-submarine warfare torpedo; 122 vertical launching system,
an advanced system for holding and firing missiles on mobile
naval platforms, such as surface ships and submarines;
and two 12.7 cm/50 Type 3 naval guns.

Its anti-aircraft and anti-submarine artillery systems are at various locations on the deck.
In the middle are two close-in weapon systems, a point-defense weapon system
for detecting and destroying short-range incoming missiles and aircraft.

On two sides are M242 Bushmaster chain guns, a 25 mm single-barrel
chain-driven autocannon. The cannons are covered in canvas on shore.

The cruiser is equipped with two MH-60R Seahawk helicopters and the helipad is at the stern .

Cannons and torpedoes at the stern of the USS Bunker Hill.

The visit by the Theodore Roosevelt take place at a time when Vietnam
and the U.S. are commemorating 25 years of diplomatic relations.
Two years ago the USS Carl Vinson visited Da Nang, marking a milestone in
ties between the two former enemies.
