Tunis — The US Embassy in Tunis, last week, organised a visit aboard US aircraft carrier, USS Abraham Lincoln, stationed in the international Mediterranean waters 50,000 nautical miles from the Tunisian coasts, between Tunisia and Sicily.

Bound for the United States where it is expected to berth before mid-August, the aircraft carrier stopped for a few days to conduct routine operations and allow successively visitors from Turkey, Germany and Tunisia to discover it.

A group representing the Prime Ministry, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of Justice as well as senior officers of the Tunisian Army and the new U.S. Ambassador in Tunis Jacob Walles boarded a Grumman C-2 Greyhound, a cargo plane of the US Navy dedicated for the transportation of people, goods and mails on their way to the carrier.

Commissioned in the late 1980s, the USS Abraham Lincoln is one of the giant aircraft carriers of the US Navy. Named after the 16th US President, its motto of "Shall Not Perish" is from a speech of Lincoln himself.

The USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN-72) is a multi-purpose nuclear-powered aircraft carrier. Two nuclear reactors produce the energy required by engines and electricity on board," said Captain John Alexander, Commanding Officer of the carrier. It is also powered by 4 turbines and 4 propeller shafts and can reach a capacity of 260,000 hp (194 MW) and a speed of over 30 knots (56+ km/h).

Approximately 4,400 sailors live aboard the carrier, including over 2,800 sea crew members and 1,500 air staff. Nearly 21% of the staff are women and the overall average age is 21 years. Moreover, 25% are senior officers.