[SampleMan]

We don't consider the Iwo and Boxer to be carriers, though they have flight decks for helos and VTOL.

[Brad from Tennessee]

Yeah. They are LPH's that each carry about a battalion of marines.

[navyblue]

We don't consider the Iwo and Boxer to be carriers, though they have flight decks for helos and VTOL.

Hey!! Tell that to the guys that sailed her!

Ex Kearsarge sailor here. The Mighty K!

[Clive]

Boxer is Expeditionary Strike Group 5, comprised of Amphibious Squadron 5, the 15th MEU, USS Boxer (LHD 4), USS Dubuque (LPD 8), USS Comstock (LSD 45), USS Bunker Hill (CG 52), USS Benfold (DDG 65), USS Howard (DDG 83), USCG Midgett (WHEC 726) and HMCS Ottawa (FFH 341).

Clearly this is in support of the Afghanistan job and the ongoing interdiction patrols in the Gulf. These deployments have been ongoing since 2002.

ESG5 deployed out of San Diego last month.

[El Gato]

We don't consider the Iwo and Boxer to be carriers, though they have flight decks for helos and VTOL.

And of course they are loaded to the gunnels (they do have gunnels, don't they? :) ) with United States Marines and their "toys"

[FastCoyote]

"We don't consider the Iwo and Boxer to be carriers, though they have flight decks for helos and VTOL."

I got into this on another thread. With the Osprey coming and the VTOL fighter, it's getting hard to distinguish the two. And the Iwo and Boxer displace around 44,000 tons, so they are small carrier size.