Rocky,
I just finished one converted to the George Washington CVN 73. Using some good photos and a little scratch building, along with the Gold Medal Models Supercarrier PE set, the kit can be buit into a nice model.
You are right about the kit aircraft. Skywave's are good, but I also used some Fujimi planes too.
Please check the US Navy Newstand site, www.news.navy.mil. They have lots of Truman photos in their photo gallery that will show what needs to be done for the island and radar tower. The GMM PE set solves some of this for you. Plus the kit's flight deck markings were fine for the Nimitz in 1975, but they are not correct for today. You can still use most of the decals, but study photos for what shouldn't be there. Many folks paint the stripes on since the yellow color is a bit orange on most printings. The deck numbers are a joke. I had to come up with some from a spares box.
A little pre planning and the Navy photo downloads should get you there.
Enjoy.