In World War II, administratively, aircraft carriers were assigned to carrier divisions (CARDIVs).

Navy carrier battle group can be traced to the 1920s and was initially based on previous experience grouping battleships and other major surface combatants. Thus, from a command and control perspective, carrier strike groups are combat organized by mission rather than by platform.

Other ships in the strike group sometimes undertake offensive operations (launching cruise missiles, for instance) and the carrier's air wing contributes to the strike group's defense (through combat air patrols and airborne anti-submarine efforts). The principal role of the carrier and its air wing within the carrier strike group is to provide the primary offensive firepower, while the other ships provide defense and support. The carrier strike group is a flexible naval force that can operate in confined waters or in the open ocean, during day and night, in all weather conditions. As of March 2023 there are 11 carrier strike groups in the U.S. Previously referred to as carrier battle groups (a term still used by other nations), they are often referred to by the carrier they are associated with (e.g., Enterprise Strike Group). power projection capability a single supercarrier holds enough firepower to rival the air forces of entire nations. Strike groups comprise a principal element of U.S. The carrier strike group commander operationally reports to the commander of the numbered fleet, who is operationally responsible for the area of waters in which the carrier strike group is operating. A carrier strike group also, on occasion, includes submarines, attached logistics ships and a supply ship.

It is an operational formation composed of roughly 7,500 personnel, usually an aircraft carrier, at least one cruiser, a destroyer squadron of at least two destroyers or frigates, and a carrier air wing of 65 to 70 aircraft. Navy ships assigned to the USS George Washington Carrier Strike Group sail in formation in the Atlantic Ocean in November 2003.Ī carrier strike group ( CSG) is a type of carrier battle group of the United States Navy.

Aircraft carrier battle group formation