USS Lexington: Fun Facts

The jet engine of a vintage aircraft on USS Lexington's flight deck

Dubbed the “Blue Ghost” by Japanese servicemen who believed they had sunk the aircraft carrier no fewer than four times during World War II, the USS Lexington now rests – entirely intact – as a museum in Corpus Christi, Texas.

Other interesting tidbits:

• The USS Lexington is as tall as a 19 story building and as long as three New York City blocks.
• You could park more than 1,000 automobiles on its flight deck.
• It has more telephones than a city of 5,000.
• It has crossed the equator 13 times.
• It was the first carrier to deploy air-to-surface missiles.
• It has sailed enough miles to circle the globe eight times.
• It has more sleeping spaces than Caesar’s Palace in Las Vegas.
• It was the first carrier to establish a seagoing high school.
• It can produce enough electricity to power a city of 150,000.
• I was the first ship in U.S. Navy history to have women aboard as crewmembers.
• The behemoth actually floats.