EXCLUSIVE: On Board The USS George H.W. Bush

Three years on from her first bombing raids on Operation Inherent Resolve, the US carrier George H.W. Bush returns to the front line in the war against the so-called Islamic State.

Named after the 41st President of the United States, who was a naval aviator during World War I, she is one of the world’s largest warships.

The 1,092-foot-long carrier has enough supplies to survive at sea for 90 days, and her nuclear reactors can operate for more than 20 years without refuelling.

On board live 5,000 sailors and 80 combat aircraft, plus four squadrons of US Navy fighter jets.

The US is the senior military power in Operation Inherent Resolve, a military intervention against the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS).

Forces News has gained exclusive access to the aircraft carrier as it returns to the Gulf.