Some 2,000 cosplay, anime, and gaming fans boarded the USS Hornet on Saturday, March 22, for Carrier Con. The day-long event featured cosplay meetups and photo opportunities on the flight deck, artist and vendor booths in the hangar bay, and tabletop gaming in the decks below.
Organized and hosted by the USS Hornet Sea, Air, and Space Museum, Carrier Con is a way for the museum to fundraise and provide outreach to a younger, non-military demographic. The $40 Carrier Con entrance fee goes toward staff salaries and maintenance costs of the USS Hornet.
A new feature at this year’s Carrier Con were the VTubers — podcasters and musicians who stream online as anime avatars instead of showing their actual faces. Attendees could virtually chat with VTubers and participate in panel sessions where VTubers streamed from remote locations.
In the evening, 200 people stayed on the Hornet for Oshi On Deck!, a dance party featuring VTubers performing on a large screen. Afterwards, attendees who wished to extend the adventure could buy a ticket to stay overnight and sleep below deck on the ship.
Thousands lined up to get into Carrier Con 2025. Performers inside included SanFlare and Tomoe Umari. Video Jean Chen.
Jean Chen is a contributing writer for the Alameda Post. Contact her via [email protected]. Her writing is collected at AlamedaPost.com/Jean-Chen.
