An aircraft carrier currently in service with the United States Navy. Commissioned in 1977, the ship is the second of the ten Nimitz-class supercarriers currently in service, and is the first ship named after the thirty-fourth President of the United States, Dwight D. Eisenhower. The vessel was initially named simply as USS Eisenhower, much like the lead ship of the class Nimitz, but the name was changed to its present form on 25 May 1970. The carrier, like all others of her class, was constructed at Newport News Shipbuilding Company in Virginia, with the same design as the lead ship, although the ship has been overhauled twice to bring her up to the standards of those constructed more recently.

Since commissioning, Eisenhower has participated in deployments including Operation Eagle Claw during the Iran hostage crisis in 1980, as well as the Gulf War in the 1990s, and more recently in support of US military operations in Iraq and Afghanistan.

On 29 June 1970, Newport News Shipbuilding of Newport News, Virginia was awarded the contract for construction. On 30 June 1975, her designation was changed from CVAN-69 to CVN-69.

She was laid down as hull number 599 on 15 August 1970 at Newport News shipyard at a cost of $679 million ($4.5 billion in 2007 dollars), launched 11 October 1975 after christening by Mamie Doud-Eisenhower, and commissioned 18 October 1977, Captain William E. Ramsey in command. Since her commissioning, Eisenhower has had 13 Commanding Officers.

On commissioning, she replaced the ageing World War II–era carrier USS Franklin D. Roosevelt in the fleet.

Eisenhower was initially assigned to the U.S. Atlantic Fleet, and, after receiving over a year of training during the spring of 1978, the ship was visited by President Jimmy Carter, who hit a golf ball off the flight deck into the Atlantic Ocean. In January 1979, she sailed for her first deployment to the Mediterranean Sea. During this deployment, while off the coast of Israel, Israeli Prime Minister Menachem Begin visited Eisenhower, The carrier returned to Norfolk Naval Station in July of the same year. Under the command of her second Commanding Officer, Captain James H. Mauldin, her second deployment occurred in 1980, when she was dispatched by President Carter to the Indian Ocean, in response to the Iran hostage crisis. She relieved the USS Nimitz three days after the Iranian hostage rescue attempt.

As a result of the tensions in the area, Eisenhower stayed on station off the coast of Iran for over eight months, and was at sea for a total of 254 days. During that period, sailors and Marines onboard enjoyed two beers (once) after 45 days without a port call. As a result of being at sea for 154 days, the crew subsequently enjoyed beer on two more occasions. After the first six months at sea, Ike had one three-day port visit to Singapore.

She was relieved by the USS Independence and returned home to Norfolk on 22 December 1980, just in time for her airwing and crew to celebrate Christmas with their families.