Argentine navy destroyer ARA Sarandi steams alongside the carrier USS Nimitz during a bilateral maritime training in the southwestern Atlantic Ocean on April 29, 2026. (Tanner Orth/U.S. Navy)
USS Nimitz on Sunday marked 51 years since its commissioning into the U.S. Navy, capping a week in which it steamed around the tip of South America and held joint exercises with Argentina’s navy.
Argentine President Javier Milei and a delegation of military and political leaders were flown to the carrier Thursday for meetings and to observe the takeoffs and landings of U.S. Navy jets from the flight deck.
Peter Lamelas, U.S. ambassador to Argentina, accompanied the Argentine delegation. He said the Nimitz’s presence underscored “a deep strategic alignment” with Argentina.
“The USS Nimitz represents the pinnacle of American naval engineering, and today it serves as a platform for showcasing the ironclad partnership between the United States and Argentina,” Lamelas said.
The joint exercises with Argentina’s navy included live fire gunnery, maneuvering in formation, air defense, anti-submarine and communications drills.
Rear Adm. Cassidy Norman, the commander of Carrier Strike Group 11, greets Argentine President Javier Milei on the flight deck of Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS Nimitz on April 30, 2025. (Alyssa J. Boling/U.S. Navy)
Argentine military and political leaders watch aircraft take off and land on the U.S. Navy carrier USS Nimitz during joint military exercises in the southwestern Atlantic on April 30, 2026. (Julian Jaime/U.S. Navy)
An MH-60 Seahawk from the carrier USS Nimitz drops a pair of anti-submarine devices into the water during joint training exercises with the Argentine Navy in the southwestern Atlantic Ocean on April 30. (U.S. Embassy to Argentina)
Argentine military and political leaders arrive on USS Nimitz to observe flight operations in the southwestern Atlantic Ocean. (Jaron Wills/U.S. Navy)
Rear Adm. Cassidy Norman, the commander of Carrier Strike Group 11, said the joint operations showed the ability of the U.S. and Argentina to act in cooperation in the Southern Hemisphere.
“Training with allies like Argentina builds the trust required to operate together in complex environments,” Norman said.
The contingent from La Armada de la República Argentina — the formal name for Argentina’s navy — included the destroyers ARA La Argentina and ARA Sarandi, the corvettes ARA Rosales and ARA Robinson, and the offshore patrol vessels ARA Piedrabuena and ARA Bartolome Cordero. An Argentine P-3 Orion maritime patrol plane, plus SH-3 Sea King and AS550 Fennec helicopters, took part.
The U.S. Navy was represented by USS Nimitz, the flagship of Carrier Strike Group 11, along with the Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Gridley. Variants of the MH-60 Seahawk flew with the Argentine contingent.
The maneuvers with Argentina’s military were the latest bilateral operations for the Nimitz, which is taking part in the multinational Southern Seas 2026 exercises. Over the past month, the Nimitz has operated in unison with the naval forces of El Salvador, Panama, Ecuador and Chile.
The Nimitz hosted President Yamandú Orsi of Uruguay during the weekend and plans to take part in exercises with the Brazilian navy as the carrier continues north, the Navy said.
The Nimitz has traveled from Naval Base Kitsap in Bremerton, Wash., around the southern tip of South America. It will continue north to its new homeport of Naval Station Norfolk, Va. It is scheduled to arrive in Virginia later this month.
Commissioned on May 3, 1975, the Nimitz is the Navy’s oldest carrier.
The Navy plans to retire Nimitz in tandem with the commissioning of the new USS John F. Kennedy, the second Gerald Ford-class carrier.
Culinary specialist Seaman Apprentice Priscila Estrada-Hernandez cuts a ceremonial birthday cake during a celebration held to honor the 51st birthday of aircraft carrier USS Nimitz on May 3, 2026. (Alyssa J. Boling/U.S. Navy)
Sailors cut a ceremonial birthday cake alongside Rear Adm. Cassidy Norman, the commander Carrier Strike Group-11, and Nimitz commanding officer Capt. Joseph Furco, during a celebration held to honor the 51st birthday of USS Nimitz (CVN 68) while underway in the Atlantic Ocean on May 3, 2026. (Tanner Orth/U.S. Navy)
