Washington - US President George W Bush on Tuesday honoured members of the US military aboard the USS Intrepid, a World War II- era aircraft carrier that is now a museum in New York harbour.

The ceremony to rededicate the museum after a renovation was part of Veterans Day celebrations across the nation to honour veterans on the 90th anniversary of the end of World War I.

The ship served in some of the fiercest naval battles of World War II in the Pacific and went on to be used during the Vietnam War and to retrieve astronauts returning from space in the Mercury space capsules of the 1960s.

Bush noted that the ship has continued its service since becoming a museum in 1982. After the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks, the ship was used as a command centre for emergency responders and rescue helicopters took off from its deck, he said.

It was the last Veterans Day as commander in chief for Bush, whose administration has been marked by the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.

"The war on terror has required courage. It has required resolve, equal to what previous generations of Americans brought to the fields of Europe and the deep waters of the Pacific," Bush told the veterans and officials gathered for the ceremony. "I'm proud to report to my fellow citizens: Our Armed Forces, the Armed Forces of this generation, have showed up for the fight, and America is more secure for it."

He joked about leaving office, but stressed that despite the perks what he would most miss after leaving office on January 20 was his interactions with the military.

"The truth of the matter is I will miss being the commander in chief of such a fabulous group of men and women," Bush said.

His successor Barack Obama marked the day by placing a wreath at a war memorial at Soldier Field in Chicago. (dpa)