A North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) RIM-7M Sea Sparrow radar-guided, air-to-air missile is fired from the Mk 29 Guided Missile Launching System (GMLS) onboard the US Navy (USN) Aircraft Carrier USS George Washington (CVN 73) during a live fire launch exercise. The Washington is completing a regularly scheduled deployment in support of Operation ENDURING FREEDOM

Aircraft carriers are warships that act as airbases for carrier-based aircraft. In the United States Navy, these consist of ships commissioned with hull classification symbols CV (aircraft carrier), CVA (attack aircraft carrier), CVB (large aircraft carrier), CVL (light aircraft carrier), CVN (aircraft carrier (nuclear propulsion) and CVAN (attack aircraft carrier (nuclear propulsion). The first aircraft carrier commissioned into the United States Navy was USS Langley (CV-1) on 20 March 1922.