New York City Prepares for Fleet Week 2008

NEW YORK (AP) -- The annual U.S. Navy invasion known as Fleet Week opens Wednesday in New York city with a flotilla of five American warships and three Canadian for the 21st annual observance.

LINK: 2008 Fleet Week NYC Schedule

Some 3,000 sailors and Marines will disembark from ships during the eight-day event. There will be public tours and aerial and simulated combat technique demonstrations by Marine Corps units.

A decade ago, as many as a dozen ships from several nations took part in Fleet Week.

But the size has diminished in recent years. The last time it included a full-size aircraft carrier was in 2005, when the USS John F. Kennedy made its final appearance before being retired.

City policy bars nuclear-powered craft from the harbor, denying port calls by the Navy's newer fleet carriers.