{{Infoboks krigsskip-klasse
| skipsklasse = «Kitty Hawk»-klassen
| bilde = USS Constellation (CV-64) aerial Battle E.jpg
| bildetekst = USS «Constellation» (1986)
| type = Hangarskip
| flagg = Naval Jack of the United States.svg
| land = USA
| underklasser = 
| verft = 
| kostnad = 
| byggeperiode = 1956-1968
| operativperiode = 1961-
| antallplanlagt = 
| antallbygget = 4
| antallitjeneste = 1
| antalliopplag = 
| antallutavtjeneste = 3
| antallbevart = 
| deplasement = 83&nbsp;960 tonn
| lengde = 323,8 m
| bredde = 39,6 m
| dybde = 11,4 m
| framdrift = 
| hastighet = 32 knop
| rekkevidde = 12&nbsp;000 nm ved 20 knop
| pansring = 
| bestykning = 
| sensorer = 
| mottiltak = 
| kommandokontroll = 
| våpenkontroll = 
| mannskap = 5&nbsp;480
| fly = inntil 90
| note = 
}}

'''«Kitty Hawk»-klassen''' er en amerikansk hangarskip-klasse som bestod av 4 skip. Designet er basert på «Forrestal»-klassen. «Kitty Hawk»-klassen er den siste klassen av hangarskip i US Navy som ikke er drevet med atomkraft.

Det fjerde skipet som ble bygget, USS «John F. Kennedy» (CV-67), hadde en del endringer i forhold til de andre. Det var blant annet planlagt med en atomreaktor, men dette ble forandret etter at byggingen var startet. På grunn av disse forskjellene blir skipet ofte regnet som en egen klasse, «John F. Kennedy»-klassen.

{|
{{Infobox Ship Image
|Ship image=300px| 
|Ship caption=USS ''Kitty Hawk''
}}
{{Infobox Ship Class Overview
|Name=
|Builders=New York Shipbuilding <br /> New York Navy Yard <br /> Newport News Shipbuilding
|Operators=
|Class before=''Forrestal''-class
|Class after=''Enterprise''-class <br /> ''Nimitz''-class
|Subclasses=
|Cost=
|Built range=
|In service range=   
|In commission range=21 April 1961  
|Total ships building= 
|Total ships planned=
|Total ships completed=4
|Total ships cancelled=
|Total ships active=
|Total ships laid up=<br /> 
|Total ships lost= (as a target)
|Total ships retired=
|Total ships preserved=
}}
{{Infobox Ship Characteristics
|Hide header=
|Header caption= 
|Ship class=
|Ship type=
|Ship tonnage=
|Ship displacement=60,933&nbsp;tons light<br />81,780&nbsp;tons full load
|Ship tons burthen=
|Ship length= waterline<br /> overall
|Ship beam= waterline<br /> extreme
|Ship height=
|Ship draught=
|Ship draft=
|Ship depth=
|Ship hold depth=
|Ship decks=
|Ship deck clearance=
|Ship ramps=
|Ship ice class=
|Ship power=
|Ship propulsion=
|Ship sail plan=
|Ship speed=32
|Ship range=12,000&nbsp;miles
|Ship endurance=
|Ship test depth=
|Ship boats=
|Ship capacity=
|Ship troops=
|Ship complement=
|Ship crew=
|Ship time to activate=
|Ship sensors=
|Ship EW=
|Ship armament=24 surface to air missiles <br /> 3-4 close-in weapons systems
|Ship armour=
|Ship armor=
|Ship aircraft=Up to 90 aircraft
|Ship aircraft facilities=
|Ship notes=
}}
|}

The ''' ''Kitty Hawk''-class''' ''Forrestal''-class vessels. Four were built, all in the 1960s,  (1961–2008),  (1961–2003),  (1965–1996) and  (1967–2007).

==Improved Forrestal carriers==
The biggest differences from the ''Forrestals'' are greater length, and a different placement of island, one is aft of the island and another on the portside stern. The movement of the #4 elevator from the forward to the after end of the angle made it useful for aircraft movement, since the forward-end elevator was useless as it was in both the landing path and in the launch path of the #3 and #4 catapults.

Three different Foster Wheeler boilers.

==Construction and design differences==
The first three units were constructed with a Terrier surface to air missile system. The supporting missile launchers and Rolling Airframe Missile launchers replacing the forward Sea Sparrow and Phalanx CIWS equipment.<ref>Doug Huddy. [http://www.stripes.com/01/jul01/ed072501f.html USS ''Kitty Hawk'' gets upgrade with
Rolling Airframe Missile weapon system]. Stars and Stripes. Wednesday, July 25, 2001.</ref> The SLQ-32 Electronic Warfare Suite was added as part of the Service Life Extension Program (SLEP) on ''Kitty Hawk'' and ''Constellation''.<ref>[http://www.fas.org/man/dod-101/sys/ship/weaps/an-slq-32.htm AN/SLQ-32 Electronic Warfare (EW) system<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref>

''America'' had several differences from the lead units of the class. Instead of two forward anchors, one on each side, ''America'' had no starboard anchor, having a bow anchor instead and an additional anchor astern, both changes were to accommodate the AN/SQS-23 sonar. ''America'' was the only post World War II US carrier to be built with sonar, though it was removed in the early 1980s. ''America'' also had a narrow smokestack compared to prior units.<ref name=MNC/>

''John F. Kennedy'' had similar design changes regarding the anchors to accommodate a sonar array, but the sonar was never installed. There were also plans to make the fourth unit nuclear powered, but since Congress would not authorize it, ''John F. Kennedy'' was constructed as a conventionally powered carrier.<ref name=MNC/> ''John F. Kennedy'''s smokestack is also different and tilts outboard to send stack gas away from the flight deck.

==Fate==
From 1987 to 1991 ''Kitty Hawk'' was overhauled for $785 million under the Service Life Extension Program (SLEP) at live-fire target and sunk on 14 May 2005.