BROWSE OUR INTERACTIVE GUIDE BELOW.

The admiral’s bridge is located in the island, just below the navigation bridge. There was not always an admiral on Intrepid. But when there was, Intrepid became a flagship, the lead ship in a group of vessels. Ships traditionally fly a flag designating that an admiral is on board, hence the term “flagship.” When the admiral and staff were on board, they worked in this level of the island.

The captain’s bridge is located in the ship’s island. It’s the highest level of the ship that is open to visitors. From here the commanding officer of the ship could oversee all of the ship’s activities.

Intrepid had two massive anchors at the bow of the ship. Each one weighed 30,000 pounds (13.6 metric tons), about the equivalent of ten automobiles. The anchors were raised and lowered on huge chains, and this is where the chains entered the ship. There are two anchor chains lying on the floor down the center of the room. They lie roughly parallel to each other and stretch from the bow end of the ship into the room. You can see about 50 feet (15.2 meters) of chain on the deck for each anchor. The shorter chain is about 900 feet (274.3 meters) long. Short lengths of chain called stoppers hold the anchor chains to the deck.

U.S. Navy policy during World War II reflected prejudice in American society. Black sailors found their worth questioned and their options limited.

A detachment of around 50–60 Marines served on board Intrepid. That’s Marine, as in U.S. Marine Corps. Marines serving on Navy warships was a practice dating back to the American Revolution. Aboard Intrepid they guarded the brig or prison, and guarded the ship’s nuclear weapons. And they served as anti-aircraft gunners.

The combat information center, known as the CIC, was the brain of the carrier. In CIC, crewmembers tracked the movement of all nearby aircraft and ships, friend or foe. The equipment they used is still here on display, behind glass walls or seen through the glass windows in doors. The section of CIC you walk through is like a narrow hallway. If you reach your hands out you can touch both glass walls at the same time.

You’re standing near an Avenger torpedo bomber, one type of aircraft that flew off Intrepid during World War II. The Avenger has one large, three-bladed propeller on the nose, each blade is black with a yellow tip. The Avenger is 40 feet (12.2 m) long from nose to tail. Its body and the top of its wings are dark blue, its sides are light blue, and its belly and the underside of the wings are white.

Even in peacetime, an aircraft carrier like Intrepid is a dangerous place to work.

U.S. Navy sailors come from all walks of American life and from countries around the world. Some of their origin stories may surprise you.

Racial violence surfaced on Intrepid and the Navy fleet in the early 1970s in response to persistent discrimination and lack of opportunity.

In 1966 Intrepid was back at war, this time in Vietnam. Aircraft like this Douglas A-4­ Skyhawk flew off Intrepid on many combat missions. This plane was part of Attack Squadron ninety-five. You can tell because the squadrons mascot, a long green lizard, is painted high up on the fuselage on both sides. The jet is pale gray, almost white, with red decorative accents at various spots on the body.

During World War II, women were essential to naval aviation. A few women made headlines as test pilots. Thousands more worked in factories building planes or served in the U.S. Navy as WAVES (Women Accepted for Volunteer Emergency Service).

With roughly 3,000 crew members serving on board, Intrepid was like a city at sea. Each crew member had a task related to the war effort and to maintaining the ship and its crew. Serving aboard an aircraft carrier meant that these young men, some still teenagers, were removed from the fiercest fighting of the ground war, but they faced danger in the air and at sea. This exhibit highlights the experiences of Intrepid’s crew at a time of war during one of the most divisive periods in American history.

Alonzo Swann, a Black sailor who served as an anti-aircraft gunner, spent years fighting the Navy for the Navy Cross he was awarded on Intrepid in 1944.

LGBTQ+ sailors served on Intrepid, Growler and throughout the Navy at great personal cost. Their experiences in service spurred organizing and activism.

Filipino nationals served as stewards on Intrepid and Growler, the result of a unique relationship between the United States and the Philippines that began in 1901.

When one member of a family joins the Navy, their entire family joins the Navy.

You are on the third deck of Intrepid, also known as the mess deck. Mess is the Navy word for dining. This deck is where Intrepid’s enlisted sailors ate their meals—breakfast, lunch and dinner. Every day, the cooks who worked on this deck prepared an average of 7,500 meals.

In the 1970s, the Navy experimented with different methods for addressing unequal opportunity and systemic racism in its ranks.

Sleeping arrangements on board Intrepid varied depending on your rank. Officers had private quarters or a few roommates. Enlisted sailors slept in berthing compartments located throughout the ship. Typically, sailors bunked with members of their division—other crew members with the same job.

The former USS Growler is one of the Navy’s early guided missile submarines. It was in service from 1958 to 1964. Growler is moored to the north side of the pier, just across from Intrepid. Its bow faces Manhattan and its stern is toward New Jersey.  It’s 317 feet (96.6 meters) long, about the length of an American football field. But it’s only 27 feet (8.2 meters) wide so accommodations down below are very tight. 

The Concorde was the fastest commercial airliner in service. It could travel twice the speed of sound. It was also the most luxurious, and we think the most beautiful. The Concorde was a collaboration between the English and the French. It was first introduced in 1976 and retired 27 years later, in 2003. We have one parked near the end of Pier 86.