The US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has reignited the debate about the safety of the US Navy’s massive aircraft carriers in the face of China’s burgeoning hypersonic missile arsenal. He contends that hypersonic missiles could sink all US aircraft carriers within minutes of a potential conflict.
However, this prognosis contradicts the evidence gathered from the sinking of the only supercarrier ever.
Hegseth’s remarks from an interview have been in the spotlight, where he claimed that China has been building its military prowess for the sole purpose of defeating the US. The arsenal of Hypersonic Missiles is an essential piece in their quest to achieve supremacy over the US, whose power is projected beyond its borders through aircraft carriers.
“So, if our whole power projection platform is aircraft carriers, and the ability to project power that way strategically around the globe. And, yeah, we have a nuclear triad and all that, but [carriers are] a big part of it. And if 15 hypersonic missiles can take out our 10 aircraft carriers in the first 20 minutes of a conflict, what does that look like?” he said in an interview that has recently surfaced.
The defense secretary’s comments have been gaining attention lately, and defense experts have been contending that the US aircraft carrier strike groups have limited defenses against hypersonic missiles.
Globally, the race to develop hypersonic weapons is intensifying. China is touted by the US Department of Defense as the world leader in hypersonic technology, having surpassed the US and Russia in developing both conventional and nuclear-capable hypersonic weapons.
Hypersonic missiles fly at least five times the speed of sound and can change course in flight, posing a challenge to defense systems on US Navy ships, especially its floating air bases.
The People’s Liberation Army successfully tested its DF-27 intermediate-range ballistic missile with a hypersonic glide vehicle in 2023, enabling it to effortlessly breach missile defense systems, according to a recent intelligence leak.
The DF-17 HGV-armed medium-range ballistic missile “will transform the PLA’s missile force,” according to the 2023 China Military Power Report. The DF-17 can carry nuclear weapons; however, it is designed for conventional missions.
The US is playing catch-up. On December 12, 2024, the US Army’s Rapid Capabilities and Critical Technologies Office, along with the US Navy Strategic Systems Programs, conducted a successful end-to-end flight test of a conventional hypersonic missile.
The US Army also launched an undisclosed hypersonic missile from Florida’s Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in April 2025. It has named its new hypersonic weapon the “Dark Eagle.”
The present US Navy defenses are designed to bring down drones, bombs, cruise missiles, and ballistic missiles. However, the highly maneuverable and surface-skimming hypersonic weapons can evade even the most advanced defensive systems. Senior U.S. defense officials agree that to counter the Chinese hypersonic missile threat, the U.S. military needs to develop new countermeasures.
To counter a hypersonic missile, the US Navy will need HELCAP, the High-Energy Laser Counter-Anti-Ship Cruise Missile Program. According to the US Navy’s fiscal year 2025 budget submission, the Laser Weapons System Demonstrator program was transferred to the HELCAP program to “expedite the development, experimentation, integration, and demonstration of critical technologies to defeat crossing Anti-Ship Cruise Missiles (ASCM) by addressing the remaining technical challenges.”
When America Sank USS America To Make Aircraft Carriers Impregnable
The aircraft carriers have given way to nuclear-powered supercarriers. America’s most advanced USS Gerald R. Ford comes at a whopping price tag of USD 13.3 billion. With five acres of flight deck and the capability to deploy four squadrons of aircraft, the supercarrier is a sovereign territory of the US, sailing across oceans.
Under international Freedom of Navigation laws, aircraft carriers are sovereign territories in almost all oceans. An aircraft carrier is generally considered to be the territory of the nation that owns it, much like an embassy or a military base abroad. Even when operating in international waters, the laws of its home country apply onboard. This makes the connotation of an aircraft carrier being hit or sunk in combat all the more ominous.
Aircraft carriers have always been vulnerable, but over time, their vulnerability has increased manifold. The advancement in satellites and AI makes it easier for near-peer adversaries like China to locate the American aircraft carriers and target them using land-based missiles. The long-range missiles will remain a threat to the US warships traversing through the Indo-Pacific.
To better understand the threat to the floating bases, the US Navy had sunk its own aircraft carrier. USS America remains the only supercarrier ever sunk.
The 1000-foot-long aircraft carrier was bombarded with explosives for several weeks to assess what keeps an aircraft carrier afloat and what makes it sink. USS America, a Kitty Hawk-class aircraft carrier, took hit after hit for over three weeks before it sank.
The classified “SinkEx” exercise was conducted in 2005 to study the survivability of aircraft carriers in combat and make floating flat-tops more impregnable in future warfare.
The attack was simulated, with explosives mimicking the torpedoes and bombs that could be deployed during a war. The first test involved a simulated attack from a submarine, with explosive charges set off below the waterline to mimic torpedoes. Then, airplanes launched missiles and dropped bombs to test the resilience of the flight deck and keel.
The onslaught began on April 19, 2005, and the aircraft carrier was scuttled on May 14. The aircraft slipped and is resting at a depth of over 16,000 feet in the Atlantic.
One feature that helped the flat top withstand so much damage was its double-layered hull. This meant that weapons had to penetrate through alternating layers of steel and empty pockets to reach her vital equipment. The battleship’s internal compartmentalization also helped it survive the onslaughts, both above and below the waterline.
The exercise underscored the aircraft carrier’s ability to remain afloat despite multiple attacks. Following a hit, a skilled crew can maneuver the aircraft carrier to the closest port for repair.
Modern naval strategy has also been influenced by the sinking of the USS America, particularly when it comes to the defense and survivability of aircraft carriers. The Ford-class carriers incorporate many of the learnings. The supercarriers have undergone shock testing to identify technical and structural flaws.
To combat air, surface, and underwater threats, the aircraft carrier also features multi-layered defenses, including ship-mounted lasers, electronic warfare systems, interceptors, and sophisticated radar.
These carriers are designed to withstand sustained bombardment with improved damage control procedures and reinforced hulls.
The findings of the SinkEx paved the way for how carriers will be positioned in combat scenarios, the requirement of protective escort fleets, and tactics to mitigate threats.
