U.S. Navy Airman Rafael Santiago blows debris on the flight deck aboard the Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS Dwight D. Eisenhower on Jan. 14, 2026. Eisenhower is moored at Norfolk Naval Shipyard for a Planned Incremental Availability maintenance period. (Jamison Sutton/U.S. Navy)
Three sailors were injured Tuesday by a fire aboard the aircraft carrier USS Dwight D. Eisenhower, the Navy said Thursday.
The Navy’s second-oldest aircraft carrier, commissioned in 1977, is undergoing maintenance at the Norfolk Naval Shipyard in Portsmouth, Va.
“On April 14, USS Dwight D. Eisenhower experienced a small fire that was immediately contained and extinguished by ship’s force and Norfolk Naval Shipyard personnel, who responded swiftly as trained,” the Navy said in a statement. “Three sailors were treated by ship’s medical and returned to full duty.”
The cause of the fire is under investigation.
Capt. Anthony Falvo, spokesman for Navy Fleet Forces in Norfolk, said the incident would not delay the Dwight D. Eisenhower finishing its maintenance cycle later this year.
“The ship is fully operational and will return to the fleet on time,” Falvo said.
The Dwight D. Eisenhower has been undergoing post-deployment maintenance since January 2025 at the Navy shipyard adjacent to its homeport at Norfolk Naval Station. It was last deployed in 2023-24 with the 5th Fleet in the Middle East. The maintenance, called a planned incremental availability, includes repairs and upgrades to the carrier’s nuclear propulsion system, weapons and crew quarters.
