Aircraft carriers also known as carriers or flattops are the backbone of naval operations anywhere in the world. An aircraft carrier is a floating air base. It carries fighters and helicopters, command teams, medical bays, workshops, fuel, and ammunition. Each aircraft carrier is worth about $4 billion and $5 billion which is a substantial investment by itself. Plus, it is carrying 70 to 80 aircraft worth billions of dollars and 6,000 crew members – enough to populate a village or small town. This is why aircraft carriers are never left alone. They are always accompanied by a multi-layered defence system called Carrier Strike Group (CSG) consisting of escort ships, aircraft, and on-board weapon systems to protect them. The Carrier Strike Group comprises a flotilla of cruisers loaded with guided-missiles, destroyers, frigates, fast-attack submarines and a supply ship that carries fuel, food and ammunition for the group. Together, this group is capable of neutralising any attack from the air, sea or underwater and can move hundreds of miles in a day without seeking any foreign country’s permission to use its land bases. Aircraft carriers thus enable nations to project power, safeguard their maritime interests, and rapidly respond to crises anywhere in the world –something which other weapon systems cannot.
The Strategic Importance of Aircraft Carriers
Aircraft carriers are gigantic ships equipped with runways which allow fighter jets, helicopters, and specialized aircraft to take off and land – even in the middle of the ocean– thousands of kilometers away from a nation’s territorial border.
Aircraft carriers can sail to trouble spots anywhere across the globe to deploy aircraft for combat, humanitarian missions, or disaster response.
They are the single most expensive asset in any Navy’s arsenal- both to build and to operate. The United States operates the largest fleet of 11 aircraft carriers, including ten Nimitz-class and one Gerald R. Ford-class supercarrier followed by the UK, France, Russia, China, and India.
The per hour operating cost varies significantly by country, carrier class, propulsion type, and air wing, but all major operator nations——face formidable financial and logistical burdens in keeping these strategic vessels ready for deployment. Pakistan currently does not operate an aircraft carrier and has little financial capacity to introduce one in the foreseeable future.
Aircraft carriers are expensive – but are they worth the price tag?
Aircraft carriers are arguably the most expensive single weapon platforms to build, run, and maintain.
Unique Capabilities: Only carriers provide mobile, persistent air power globally.
Diplomatic Impact: Their presence can prevent wars by deterring aggression, provide leverage in negotiations, and reassure allies.
Crisis Management: In unforeseen emergencies, aircraft carriers offer rapid, sustained military and humanitarian response options that land bases or other ships can’t match.
Construction Costs: A modern nuclear-powered carrier like the US Gerald R. Ford class costs over $13 billion just to construct, not including its aircraft or support ships.
Operating Costs: Estimates vary, but running a large carrier with its crew, supplies, and maintenance can easily top millions of dollars per day, or hundreds of thousands per hour.
Personnel Costs: Nuclear-powered carriers need thousands of well-trained personnel, including nuclear specialists who require higher pay and training.
Lifetime Costs: Over 50 years, a single carrier’s total cost (including upgrades and disposal) can exceed $20 billion—far more than smaller ships or even many military aircraft.
Vulnerability: Some critics worry carriers are “big targets” for modern missiles and advanced submarines. Detractors say drones, missiles, and smaller ships can do many things a carrier does for less money. Critics argue that carriers are becoming increasingly vulnerable to modern weapons, such as advanced anti-ship ballistic missiles, hypersonic weapons, and drone swarms. Even a small amount of damage can render the flight deck unusable.
Strain on resources: The massive budget required for carriers pulls resources from other, potentially more efficient, military technologies. Some strategists suggest a more “distributed operations” network of smaller, networked, and less expensive vessels could be an alternative.
Cost of operating aircraft carriers
| Country | Carrier Example | Estimated Per-Hour Cost | Key Factors |
| USA | Nimitz/Ford class | $83,000–$333,000 | Nuclear power, large air wing, largest crew, tech edge |
| UK | Queen Elizabeth class | $13,500–$21,000 | Lean crew, smaller fleet, advanced automation |
| France | Charles de Gaulle | $27,000 | Nuclear, single carrier, high maintenance periods |
| Russia | Admiral Kuznetsov | $11,000+ | Aging vessel, reliability issues, fuel-intensive |
| China | Shandong, Liaoning, Fujian | $1,000–$80,000+ | Lower labor/fuel cost, costs rising with complexity |
| India | INS Vikramaditya/Vikrant | $46,000 | Imported parts, tight budgets, smaller air wings |
| Pakistan | No carrier | Not applicable | Budgetary impossibility |
The per hour cost of operating aircraft carriers varies significantly across nations due to differences in carrier size, propulsion (nuclear vs conventional), crew, maintenance needs, and support logistics.
United States: Nuclear-Powered Supercarriers
The U.S. Navy’s fleet includes 11 nuclear-powered Gerald R. Ford-class (CVN) with a construction cost of $13 billion each. It is one of the world’s most advanced and expensive warships. The cost to operate a U.S. Nimitz or Ford-class aircraft carrier is approximately $6–8 million per day, equating to about $250,000–$333,000 per hour. This figure includes crew, maintenance, fuel, and carrier air wing operations. Larger strike group deployment pushes costs upwards of $7 million/day or about $291,000/hour. Every hour at sea is an investment exceeding most nations’ entire naval budgets.
Public estimates for operating a full U.S. Carrier Strike Group (CSG)—including the carrier, 60-80 aircraft, five surface combatants (cruisers/destroyers), and a fast-attack submarine—place the daily operating cost for a single U.S. carrier strike group to $8 million per day. This means a per hour cost of $250,000–$333,000 including salaries for 5,000 – 6,000 personnel, maintenance, fuel (for nuclear-powered ships, air wing and support fleet), logistics, electronics, radars, and defensive systems.
The annual operating cost per Nimitz-class carrier is about $726 million or $83,000 per hour (assuming around 8,760 hours/year).
This astronomical cost is driven by several factors:
Nuclear Propulsion: While the nuclear-powered ship does not need refuelling for 20-25 years, the nuclear infrastructure requires highly specialized, high-salaried personnel. The mid-life Refuelling and Complex Overhaul (RCOH) costs several billion dollars and takes years, a massive expense that must be amortized into the annual operating budget.
Air Wing Operations: The air wing is arguably the most significant expense. The Cost per Flight Hour (CPFH) for the U.S. Navy’s advanced fighter aircraft, like the F/A-18 Super Hornet or the F-35C Lightning II, can exceed $10,000 to $30,000 per hour, respectively. A carrier deployment involves thousands of flight hours, consuming immense quantities of specialized jet fuel and demanding constant replacement of high-value parts.
Crew Complement: A Ford-class carrier still requires a crew of over 4,500 personnel. Salaries, food (over 14,000 meals daily), medical services, and training for this population are immense overheads, even before considering the crews of the escort ships.
United Kingdom: HMS Queen Elizabeth
The Royal Navy’s fleet includes two Queen Elizabeth class (QEC) conventionally powered carriers (using gas turbines and diesel engines) each costing over $4 billion to build. HMS Queen Elizabeth-class costs $123 million per year to operate ship-only, which averages about $14,000 per hour (excluding air wing). Including air wing and surge operations, some reports suggest up to $115,000 per hour when accounting for full fleet operations.
In 2021, the UK Ministry of Defence disclosed that the estimated cost to operate a QEC carrier was $130 million per annum for the ship alone. This equates to approximately around $330,000 per day (at a $1.25/£ rate). Daily Ship-Only Estimate: ≈ $13,750 per hour. However, this figure does not include the air wing (F-35B Lightning IIs) or the escort ships (the UK Carrier Strike Group).
France: Charles de Gaulle
Charles de Gaulle – France’s single carrier is the only non-US nuclear-powered carrier and much smaller than U.S. Nimitz/Ford-class vessels. It does not need periodic conventional refuelling because of the nuclear propulsion, but its French-designed K15 reactors are smaller and require maintenance more frequently than the U.S. designs. The build cost was about $3.5 billion. Estimated annual operation expenditures reportedly around $230 million, meaning an hourly cost of about $27,000. The requirement for a multi-billion dollar midlife nuclear overhaul still places a heavy financial burden on the French Navy.
Russia: Admiral Kuznetsov
Admiral Kuznetsov, Russia’s only Russian carrier is much older and conventionally powered, but suffers from maintenance woes and inconsistent operational readiness. Its operational history has been plagued by mechanical failures, chronic maintenance issues, extensive multi-billion-dollar refits, and logistical delays. The actual per hour cost for the deployment of Kuznetsov is difficult to verify, but annual figures of $100 million or more (about $11,000+ per hour) have been cited for periods when it was at sea in the 2010s.
China: Shandong, Liaoning, and Fujian
China operates Liaoning, a refurbished Soviet-era carrier, indigenously built Shandong and Fujian – a CATOBAR (Catapult Assisted Take-Off but Arrested Recovery) carrier. All of them are conventionally powered. China’s carrier program is expanding rapidly. The Liaoning (a refurbished Soviet-era vessel) reportedly costs around $10 million per year to operate ($1,000+ per hour, if underway constantly), but real averages are higher once air wing and deployment profiles are factored in. Newer ships like the indigenously built Shandong and the Type 003 (Fujian) exceed $80,000 per operational hour in a full wartime posture.
India: INS Vikramaditya and INS Vikrant
India has two operational aircraft carriers, including INS Vikramaditya (Russian origin) and the indigenously built INS Vikrant — both conventionally powered.
INS Vikramaditya, being a Soviet-design acquisition with a mix of Russian (MiG-29K) and Western systems, faces a substantial, ongoing expense for spare parts, maintenance contracts, and foreign technical support. The annual operational cost for INS Vikramaditya is estimated at $400 million, or $46,000 per hour (assuming 8,760 hours/year) including imported spare parts, refits, aviation fuel, and staffing.
INS Vikrant’s costs (both operational and developmental) have been a matter of parliamentary and media scrutiny, emphasizing “value for money” against persistent fiscal pressures.
India currently has two active carrier battle groups (CBG) protecting INS Vikramaditya and INS Vikrant and might go for a third CBG once INS Vishal, the third aircraft carrier, is inducted in the Indian Navy as a replacement for INS Vikramaditya.
A typical CBG in the Indian Navy consists of the aircraft carrier, 2-3 destroyers, 1-2 frigates, 1 submarine, and 1 support tanker. Indian CBGs employ Kolkata-class / Visakhapatnam-class destroyers, Nilgiri-class frigates and a Deepak/Shakti class fleet tanker. The air wing on the carrier typically includes 30-36 aircraft (MiG-29K fighters and helicopters).
Indian Carrier Battle Group: Cost Breakdown
While precise fuel, crew, and operational costs for Indian CBGs are not publicly available, here is a component-wise estimated cost breakdown for fuel, crew, maintenance, support systems, and infrastructure:
Capital Cost:
· Capital cost for carriers like INS Vikrant is around $2.5 billion.
· Upgrades & Modernization: Integration of new technologies, sensors, and weapons.
· Depreciation & Lifecycle Costs: Long-term asset wear and replacement planning.
Estimated Annual Fuel Cost: ₹500–800 crore (US$60–100 million)
· The conventionally powered carriers consume thousands of litres of marine fuel daily for carrier propulsion and the air wing.
· The surface combatants also consume large amounts of fuel.
· The escort ships – destroyers, frigates, corvettes consume significant amount of fuel
· Carrier-based fighters like MiG-29K have high fuel burn rates during sorties.
· Aircraft operational cost includes fuel (aviation kerosene), maintenance, and pilot training.
Estimated Annual Salaries + Training Cost: ₹1,000–1,500 crore (US$120–180 million)
• The carrier ship have around 1,500-2,000 crew members besides air wing crew (additional). Crew salaries, allowances, and training for officers, sailors, aircrew, and support staff are a major recurring expense.
• Crew sizes per destroyer/frigate are in hundreds, with associated salary, provisioning, and training costs.
• Submarine crew size is small but highly specialized, adding to salary and operational costs.
Estimated Annual Maintenance Cost: ₹1,500–2,000 crore (US$180–240 million)
• Maintenance costs include periodic dry docking, routine and mid-life refits, repairs, electronic and weapons system upgrades as well as upkeep of radar, sonar, missile systems
• Maintenance includes weapons, and sensor system upkeep.
• Aircraft Maintenance: Spare parts, avionics, engine overhauls.
• The group usually includes Kilo-class or Scorpène-class diesel-electric submarines which have lower fuel consumption but require specialized maintenance and crew training.
Operational & Support Infrastructure: ₹800–1,200 crore (US$96–144 million)
• Deepak-class and Shakti-class fleet tankers provide replenishment at sea for fuel, munitions, and stores.
• Support infrastructure includes naval bases, repair yards, logistics chains, and training facilities.
• Logistics & Supply Chains: Ammunition, food, medical, and technical supplies.
• Command & Control Systems: Satellite links, secure communications, and data networks.
• Training simulators, communication networks, and sensor integration form part of ongoing support costs.
• The cost of maintaining this support infrastructure, including docking and replenishment capabilities, is sizable but indirect.
Total Estimated Annual Operating Cost
• ₹6,000–8,500 crore (US$720 million–1 billion), excluding capital acquisition
Pakistan: No Aircraft Carrier
Pakistan does not possess or operate an aircraft carrier and lacks the budget and defence ecosystem to finance, man, or support one in the foreseeable future. Its strategic maritime defence is instead focused on cost-effective anti-access/area denial (A2/AD) strategy using submarines, frigates, and land-based maritime patrol aircraft. This strategic choice explicitly avoids the carrier’s colossal operational cost, freeing up capital for other deterrent assets. Its annual naval budget is lower than the annual operating cost of a single active carrier from most operator navies.
Conclusion
The aircraft carrier is the single most logistically complex and the greatest strain on the defence budget of many countries. Aircraft carriers remain, by design and purpose, the world’s most potent mobile military platforms. Their strategic importance—enabling the projection of air power anywhere on Earth—has been proven in major wars and crises situations. While they are extremely expensive to build and operate, the scale and flexibility they provide are unmatched.
Carriers are expensive to buy, expensive to operate, and expensive to dispose of once their service lives are over. Still, in a crisis, there is no other weapon system that can do so much before it even fires a shot. Someday, something will replace the carrier—but that day is not today.
