Posted on 06/17/2014 9:44:15 PM PDT by smokingfrog
Yet another decommissioned “supercarrier” is coming to the Port of Brownsville for scrapping, and it’s the biggest one yet.
In fact, the dismantling of the former aircraft carrier USS Constellation by International Shipbreaking Ltd. will be the largest ship-recycling job to take place in the United States.
Until the Constellation contract, the former USS Forrestal and the former USS Saratoga were the largest ships slated for salvaging by a U.S. ship breaker. The Forrestal arrived in Brownsville to much fanfare in February after being towed from Philadelphia, and is now being dismantled by All Star Metals.
The Saratoga, decommissioned in 1994, is expected to depart under tow from Naval Air Station at Newport, Rhode Island, this summer and will be recycled by ESCO Marine at the Port of Brownsville.
Construction began on the Constellation, the second of the Kitty Hawk-class of carriers, in 1957 at New York Naval Shipyard in Brooklyn. It was commissioned in October 1961. The vessel was decommissioned in August 2003 at the Naval Air Station North Island in San Diego, then towed to the inactive ship facility at Bremerton, Wash.
International Shipbreaking is expected to begin towing the 62,000-ton carrier — nicknamed “Connie” — from Washington in late summer.
(Excerpt) Read more at brownsvilleherald.com ...
yep
True. But you know as well as I do that if Ted Kennedy were still around the museum would be federally funded and a National Park.
Has anyone ever worked out how many razor blades you could theoretically manufacture from a scrapped aircraft carrier?
It’s a good school. Tried to get my two oldest girls to go there, but they all want to “move away” for college these days.
Refurbed, this old beauty has years of life in her.
1,634,922,318
;^)
You have to show your work young man...
He first tried to get into UC Davis, but got accepted at Sac State. Next year, he will graduate, and plans to go to OTS, and become an Air Force officer. I told him that is fine, I just hope he doesn't have to serve under the Hildebeast. He doesn't like that idea either.
The hull might but the propulsion plant has seen it's life. To do a refurb on the 8 boilers that would make it safe again would just about mean replacing them. That would mean taking her apart almost down to the keel {bottom}. When the keel was laid the boilers were among the first things to be installed and the ship built around it.
This is a 1200 PSI super heated steam system. Very dangerous and can be very deadly. Then there's the turbines themselves, Hydraulics including elevators, shaft and shaft alleys, generators, switchboards, etc. The Auxiliaries such as the chill water A/C plants and the miles of associated piping would also have to be replaced. In short it would be quicker and cheaper to build a new conventional carrier using either the Kitty Hawk or JFK blueprints.
The carriers at about 25 years service under go a Ship Life Extension Program or S.L.E.P. which is a comprehensive overhaul that takes almost 5 years. Every carrier but AMERICA CV-66 underwent this to give the 45-50 year design life. America was decommissioned instead as a money saving measure. They then ran her several years beyond what was safe. The result was a pier side boiler room explosion upon return from her 1993-94 MED Cruise. She was towed Cold Iron up to NNSY in Portsmouth, given a Band-Aid repair and sent out for yet another deployment and then taken out of service.
In past history we've sold ships to other nations. Several things to consider. They usually were Diesel engine propulsion, did not have the classified material a CV does {Classified below second deck} and those countries could safely maintain and operate the ships. A carrier takes a well trained and well experienced crew to keep it running safe. As for CONNIE being still classified? America was a Kitty Hawk Class same as Connie. She was sank in 15,000 plus feet of water to protect that information.
Also, I forgot to ask if single-blade or double-blade.
Yeah, or they could have turned it into a reef.
They don’t need it.
If they want a carrier they will design and build it
If Teddy hadn't been around the JFK would have been decommed in the late 1990's. I wish all my FR Bookmarks still worked. I had lots of links to the breakdown of the Navy starting in the early to mid 1990's. The breakdowns weren't crew created issues they were funding related issues where needed shipyard repairs were denied. That in turn took brought us to the situation at 9/11 where two carriers could not get underway. The solution? They fired the Captains rather than place the blame where it needed to be at the Pentagon and congress.
JFK was neglected. It was designated by the Pentagon as reserve, given a reserve budget, then ran active off and on for over a decade. Things started breaking down fast. It wasn't just the JFK before that it was America. Diplomacy's Gunboat http://www.fas.org/man/dod-101/sys/ship/docs/940224-cr.htm here is an excerpt from that article. I saw the article myself in a US News and World Report copy a family member gave me.
The America needs constant attention. Commissioned in 1965, it is showing its age. A month before leaving Norfolk, a senior enlisted crew member complained to his congressman: The ship was operating on only two of its six electric generators, without radar and unable to pump fuel. This would be its third six-month cruise in three years, and without the standard 18 months at home for repairs, salt water and full steaming had taken their toll.
But how? No radar? I'll explain it and I do know what I am talking about as to why. Two of six generators underway meant only one or two of her ten Chill Water Plants could be used. They drew anywhere from 1200-2000 amps on start up and 175-300 amps to run. No Air Conditioning? No Electronics it was as simple as that. Only the Gyro and primitive navigation electronics would have been spared for a reason I won't go into. I worked on the A/C plants. Critical repairs requiring shipyard were not getting done. The decision not to extend her life had been made under Poppy's tenure.
LOL! Well played!
They couldn't due to classified info. America was sank 15,000 plus feet down after the data obtained to sink her was gathered to build the Gerald R Ford.
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