elcome aboard USS Enterprise (CVN 65), the Navy's "Carrier with Class." Enterprise is a vital national asset from which the United States is able to project air power ashore in support of national interests. Over the past five years, Iraq, Somalia, Bosnia, Haiti and Cuba have experienced the feeling of a super carrier showing up on their door steps, ready for action. The name Enterprise has been part of U.S. naval history since 1775, when a 70-ton British sloop was captured by the United States, renamed Enterprise, and used to fight against the British. The current Enterprise is the eighth ship to bear the name and was commissioned in Novermber 1961. It is the world's first nuclear-powered aircraft carrier and one of the most amazing engineering feats of modern times. The Big E has completed 14 deployments, including six combat deployments to Southeast Asia during the Vietnam War, steamed more than 500,000 miles, and participated in confrontations ranging from the Cuban Missile Crisis in 1962 to the 1986 Libyan raid and the 1988 Iran naval engagement. Today, Enterprises's long and distinguished history is being upheld and added to by the finest crew in the Navy. The average age of our Big E Sailors is 23 years old. These dedicated, highly trained men and women who have volunteered to protect the security of the United States, represent America's finest. I am very proud of the ship and crew, and I am honored to have you as a guest aboard the Big E. Enjoy your stay.

M.D. Malone Captain,
U.S. Navy