Posted on 03/02/2007 5:43:53 AM PST by PajamaTruthMafia
Beloved “Big John,” the USS John F. Kennedy, is armed and ready for the thousands expected to flood the South Boston docks this weekend for a final salute to the Camelot-burnished carrier
“I don’t think there could be a more fitting place for the JFK to make a final port than the city of Boston,” said Rear Adm. H. Denby Starling II.
Starling, in charge of decommissioning the JFK, told the Herald the crew has planned hard for this pivotal weekend. They are expecting more than 60,000 visitors Saturday and Sunday.
Crowds will see level-orange security complete with metal detectors and armed Navy guards - the M-16s were in full view yesterday - along with bomb-sniffing dogs.
And if you want to pass muster, report early to avoid the rush.
“The line is going to get really long really fast,” said Cmdr. Chris Sims. He said the Navy would “cap” the line as early as noon to make sure everyone sees the ship before the 5 p.m. closing. Sims predicted lines will begin before sunrise, but nobody will be allowed on board until 8 a.m.
What you’ll see is an aircraft carrier polished and proud. The view from the flight deck puts you almost eye-to-eye with the city’s skyscrapers while jets land over the bow at Logan International Airport.
Portraits of former captains line the walls and the crew is ready to sell T-shirts and hats (at $20 each).
“This is history sitting right here!” said Janet Ellis, who flew in from Jacksonville, Fla., to meet her husband as he disembarks from the vessel.
Sen. Edward M. Kennedy was scheduled to swear in 300 new citizens on board today, including several members of the JFK’s crew.
“She’ll always hold a special place in the hearts of our family, and I know my brother would be very proud of the skill and courage and dedication of the sailors who have served on her so well on so many major occasions over the years,” the Massachusetts Democrat said in a statement.
I read yesterday that the JFK is headed for the Phily Navy Yard.
I heard that, too. Considering the material condition of the ship it makes no sense to store it rather than scrap it...unless it has another future ahead of it. Like a floating shrine to it's namesake???
Not good at all:
In December 2001 the KENNEDY failed a pre-deployment readiness inspection, and the ship's captain, Capt. Maurice Joyce, was relieved of command. The ship was seriously degraded in her ability to conduct air operations, due to a shortfall estimated at $300 million in maintenance funds since 1995. Three of four aircraft elevators were out of commission, two of four catapults were degraded, and the overall flight deck firefighting capability was seriously degraded. These major system degradations were in addition to a significant number of deficiencies noted in the fueling system. The propulsion plant was evaluated to be extremely unreliable and determined to be routinely operated out of safe parameters and in non-standard configuration. Two shaft seals had unacceptable leakage rates. Topside corrosion, including the condition of the mast, superstructure and catwalks, was the worst observed in three years. The Kennedy was scheduled to depart for Puerto Rico in January 2002 for training, and departed for the Mediterranean on 20 February 2002.
The Kennedy was scheduled for major repairs and was unavailable for service for most of 2003. John F. Kennedy is on the verge of getting a long-overdue overhaul, after having long been short-changed on maintenance and modernization, beginning with an abortive mid-1990s overhaul and continuing when the ship was assigned to the cash-strapped Naval Reserve Force. Starting in January 2003 and for the following nine months, contract workers and the crew began the first half of what the Navy is calling a "split availability." Atlantic Fleet said it would spend $218 million in 2003 — about twice the amount originally programmed — to pay for this initial phase, to be conducted pierside in the ship’s home port of Mayport, FL.
The USS John F. Kennedy returned from the MED 04 Deployment in December 2004.
The USS John F. Kennedy was scheduled to begin a complex overhaul (COH) maintenance period in fiscal year 2005, and funds for this COH were authorized and appropriated in fiscal year 2005 for this purpose. The Kennedy was scheduled to spend a year in the yards, including eight months in drydock at Norfolk Naval Shipyard, VA. The work was to add at least another decade to Kennedy’s life and extend its service to around 45 years.
In testimony before the Committee on Armed Services in February 2005, the Chief of Naval Operations testified that when he first submitted the proposed Navy budget for fiscal year 2006, it included 12 aircraft carriers. The last two Quadrennial Defense Reviews, in 1997 and 2001, both supported a force structure of 12 aircraft carriers. The reduction to 11 aircraft carriers was made after the Office of Management and Budget directed a budget cut for the Department of Defense.
The Navy cancelled the fiscal year '05 Complex Overhaul (COH) for USS John F. Kennedy (CV 67) 01 April 2005. Resulting from this decision, the homeport shift from Mayport, Fla., to Norfolk, Va., did not occur. Kennedy’s Complex Overhaul (COH) was estimated to take more than 15 months. Given the requirement to present a balanced program and under the current fiscal environment, Navy leadership felt the decision to cancel the COH would free resources for other priorities. The final decision on the ship’s decommissioning and inactivation status was pending at that time.
Section 126 of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2006 (Public Law 109-163) amended section 5062 of title 10, United States Code, to set a minimum carrier force structure of not less than 12 operational aircraft carriers.
The Department of Defense's legislative proposal for fiscal year 2007, included a section that would effectively allow retirement of the conventionally-powered aircraft carrier, USS John F. Kennedy, thereby reducing the carrier force structure from 12 to 11 ships. The Navy's decision to reduce the number of carriers was not based on mission requirements analysis; rather, the decision was based on fiscal constraints.
In February 2006, the Navy announced it was suspending air operations on the carrier because of problems with arresting gear motors, which could make it hazardous for pilots to take off and land. The motors are tied to the cables which Navy planes snag with a tail hook to land. Since that time, the Kennedy had been moored at Mayport except for the times it went to sea for basic seamanship drills.
It is the last nonnuclear carrier in the fleet.
Directed downward from what? You'd have to have that pressure exerted over quite some distance to overcome the thrust from the missile's engine. Keeping the water on the missile would be nearly impossible. CIWS is a much better final line of defense.
Do you mean his one??
I can't attach it. I'll email it to your freeper email.
Tom
Its been a disappointment for most of its floating life. To start with, LBJ made it an oil burner in a nuclear age.
Maybe that explains why the Basin looks a bit empty lately.
Proud to have sailed aboard her in '78.
I worked on the USS JFK when it was being constructed in 1968, as it was being built the Eisenhower's' keel was being laid. Shortly there after I received my notice that my friends and neighbors had selected me to become a member of the US Army. When I completed my tour in Nam as a Re-con Platoon leader I returned to work on the Eisenhower which was floating. I enjoyed my tour in service and working on the boats.
Both the America and the Kennedy were laid down after the Enterprise. Both were designed from the beginning to be oil fired.
And there won't be any playing Soccer either. You're gonna play real football.
I heard they scrapped a couple of big cruisers...
It's in "beloved" condition. The story says so.
Words of wisdom for the Swimmer:
http://www.acmewebpages.com/midi/stupid.wav
Don't they remove all the aircraft before coming into port? Is Boston Harbor that deep?
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