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Arts & Culture

Carrier: Controlled Chaos

Airmen maintain an F/A-18E Hornet, flown by Strike Fighter Squadron 14 (VFA-14), aka “The Top Hatters,” aboard the "USS Nimitz."
Carrier Project
Airmen maintain an F/A-18E Hornet, flown by Strike Fighter Squadron 14 (VFA-14), aka “The Top Hatters,” aboard the "USS Nimitz."

Airs Tuesday, July 13, 2010 at 9 p.m. on KPBS TV

"Carrier" is a character-driven, edge-of-your-seat, nonfiction drama and a once-in-a-lifetime total immersion in the high-stakes world of a nuclear aircraft carrier. "Carrier" follows a core group of film participants aboard the "USS Nimitz," from the admiral of the strike group to the fighter pilots to the youngest sailors, as they navigate personal conflicts around their jobs, families, faith, patriotism, love, the rites of passage and the war on terror.

Explore The Ship

Discover the history of the "USS Nimitz" and examine key areas of the carrier.

The "USS Nimitz" is 24 stories high, three football fields long and carries more than 5,000 Navy personnel and 85 military aircraft. Filmed from May to November 2005, nearly 2,000 hours of high-definition video were captured aboard the ship during a full six-month deployment to the Persian Gulf, of which three months were spent in combat in support of the ground troops. For the first time, a television series takes a raw and personal look at the Navy’s role in this controversial war.

"Controlled Chaos"

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The men and women of the "USS Nimitz" live beneath the runway of a major airport. They sleep on the roof of a nuclear power plant. It’s a perilous environment. Their only bulwark against danger and chaos is to bond with their units on board the ship. The “Shooters,” who launch the jets, have a “Circle of Trust”; the Ordies (ordnance personnel) pride themselves on being a “mafia”; the F-18 squadrons — the Black Aces, the Hoboes and the Marine Red Devils — are tight fraternities.

Upcoming Episodes:

"Super Secrets" will air on Tuesday, July 20, 2010 at 9 p.m. on KPBS TV

"Squared Away' will air on Tuesday, July 27, 2010 at 9 p.m. on KPBS TV

Watch the entire episode "Controlled Chaos"