Navy warplanes spotted in formation over world’s largest aircraft carrier (PHOTOS)

February 2, 2026, by Fatima Bahtić

Aircraft from US Navy Carrier Air Wing 8 fly in formation over the world’s largest aircraft carrier, the Ford-class USS Gerald R. Ford (CVN-78), during the wing’s aerial change-of-command ceremony while underway in the Caribbean Sea.

As disclosed, the event happened on January 28, 2026. US military forces, including navy surface ships, patrol aircraft, and unmanned vessels, are deployed to the Caribbean Sea to support US Southern Command’s ongoing counter-drug mission aimed at disrupting illicit narcotics trafficking.

Fleet units operate in cooperative maritime security operations alongside partner nations, employing destroyers, patrol aircraft such as P-8s and unmanned surface vehicles. The US Navy’s Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer, USS Thomas Hudner (DDG 116), also recently conducted flight operations while underway in the Caribbean Sea.

US Southern Command is responsible for military operations and security cooperation in the Caribbean, Central America, and South America. The carrier’s embarked air wing is carrying out routine flight operations to enhance maritime domain awareness, and as emphasized by the US Navy, to support “Department of War-directed operations, and the president’s priorities to disrupt illicit drug trafficking and protect the homeland”.

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USS Gerald R. Ford is the US Navy’s newest and most advanced aircraft carrier and the lead ship of the Ford class. Designed to enhance operational readiness and efficiency, the aircraft carrier features advanced launch and recovery systems, increased electrical power generation, and improved command-and-control capabilities compared to previous carrier classes.

The ship was launched on November 17, 2013, and commissioned into service on July 22, 2017, at Naval Station Norfolk, Virginia. The vessel is one of the largest warships ever built, with a length of about 1,106 feet (337 meters) and a beam of roughly 134 feet (41 meters) at the waterline. Fully loaded, it displaces around 100,000 tons.

The carrier’s crew and embarked air wing together number several thousand personnel, roughly 4,600 sailors and aviators, and the ship is designed to carry more than 75 aircraft, including fighters, electronic warfare planes, early warning aircraft and helicopters.

USS Gerald R. Ford entered the Caribbean Sea in November  2025. Following this transit through the Anegada Passage, the carrier remained active in the region and later arrived in St. Thomas, US Virgin Islands, for a scheduled port visit on December 1, 2025, marking one of its first stops since entering the Caribbean area of operations.

After departing on deployment from Naval Station Norfolk on June 24, 2025, the carrier strike group conducted multi-domain strike group operations in the Atlantic Ocean before transiting east into the US Sixth Fleet area of operations, sailing above the Arctic Circle and throughout the Mediterranean Sea.