Posted on 12/24/2012 6:16:46 AM PST by blam
The World's Largest Naval Station Is Packed Tight For Christmas
Robert Johnson
December 24,2012
The Navy does its best to get troops home for the holidays when it can, but this display at Norfolk Naval base is still more the exception than the rule.
Nine "Flattops," five aircraft carriers, and four amphibious assault ships, are crammed together here at Norfolk among smaller ships and nuclear submarines from December 20, Navy photos. The nine flattops alone, number more than all eight battleships at Pearl Harbor in 1941.
The aircraft carriers USS Dwight D. Eisenhower (CVN 69), USS George H.W. Bush (CVN 77), USS Enterprise (CVN 65), USS Harry S. Truman (CVN 75), and USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN 72) are in port at Naval Station Norfolk, Va., the world’s largest naval station.
The aircraft carriers USS Dwight D. Eisenhower (CVN 69), USS George H.W. Bush (CVN 77), USS Enterprise (CVN 65), USS Harry S. Truman (CVN 75), and USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN 72)
(Excerpt) Read more at businessinsider.com ...
Not exactly...
“What are those temporary structures on the flight decks?”
Obviously a wedding reception.
Is this his job, under his command, uh, the POTUS as well?
Ironic that the ignorant POTUS is in the Pearl Harbor area.
Well this is stupid ...
My thought exactly!
“The equivalent of a single W-80 warhead would be all the bad guys wouild need”
All they’d need is the equivalent of one Little Boy (Hiroshima) bomb. Those carriers are spaced closer than the portion of downtown Hiroshima that was completely flattened. 15,000 tons of high explosive equivalent leaves a mark. Think of the damage that 15,000 2,000 lb bombs would do - and those aren’t even pure explosive - in fact each contains less than 1,000 lb.
The explosive power of nuclear weapons is truly awe-inspiring.
Chevy Volts boxed up as presents and ready to be shipped to China........
My dad was on the shakedown cruise of the original USS Tarawa (CV-40)
Just the periscope of a Chinese sub filled with tourists.......
In the photos from posts 35 & 37, the second ship, CVN-77 USS George H W Bush, is at the tail end of a 4 month long refit operation and is just completing its work-ups. #3 is CVN-65 USS Enterprise which is starting its decommission cycle. The 4th ship up and from the left is the USS Peleliu (LHA-5) the last active Tarawa-class amphibious assault ship. The 5th ship in sequence is the USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN-72) which is undergoing its Reactor Complex Overhaul that started this past fall (hard to believe that this ship was completed in 1988). The ships (7&8) further back may be the decommissioned sister ships of the Peleliu but I am completely uncertain other than they appear to be in the same configuration and length.
So, in the Navy's defense, only 2 of the CVNs are ported for the holidays while 1 is 'dead' and the other two are in maintenance. It is a hard truth that you have to plan for maintenance and replacement if you want a functional Navy or any military. It is just that when the Navy does it, it is far more visible and when you consider that the newest, USS Bush, cost $6.2 Billion - WOW!
I thought the US aircraft carriers were all out to sea when the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor. it was almost like they knew something was coming.
Later, I was a "tin can sailor" (FT) and next saw her off the coast of Hawaii on a Midshipmen's cruise (1967). Still impressed me, especially when her Nuke group raced back to San Diego. She was slow to start, but beat the Cruiser and DLG...
obvious security issue is obvious
who the hell do we have running the show these days?
did they forget history??
Don’t know if the Japanese would have attacked Pearl Harbor had we had 11 carriers in the Pacific in 1941.
similar: “having a likeness or resemblance, especially in a general way”
Nor, are they battleships anchored/tied-up bow to stern, but aircraft carriers side by side. The general resemblance to the situation(capital ships wharfed in close proximity) at Pearl is close enough for me.
I believe it was the battleships that were dense-packed at Pearl.
Well anyway, for those who missed it (unless it's on the truncated first page that FR seems to not want to display)
My first impression: “Target rich environment”... like an elementary school, movie theater or shopping mall at Christmas time... only on a much larger scale.
I suspect that all defensive systems are turned off and locked up, and if there are any guards on deck they are prohibited from having any live ammunition on them. They may not even be allowed to carry weapons, making this port another “gun free zone”.
Has an Iranian tanker, container or cargo ship recently arrived off shore within missile distance?
Whatever is going to happen, there is likely not a bloody thing we can do about it - so just sit back and watch our military defenses being systematically destroyed...
..from within.
This whole scene screams the out same warning as our recent election just did; “PRE-ARRANGED”!
God help anyone who remains aboard any of those probably doomed ships. Unlike Pearl Harbor, they won’t even get a chance to fight back.
There are a lot of white tents in pictures, It looks like they are resurfacing the decks under weather resistant tents.
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