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VIDEO: USS Enterprise Returns to Original Drydock for Inactivation
gCaptain ^ | May 5, 2015 | Mike Schuler

Posted on 05/05/2015 7:11:56 PM PDT by artichokegrower

The world’s first nuclear powered aircraft carrier was moved into its birthplace dry dock at Huntington Ingalls’ Newport News Shipbuilding this weekend as part of the ongoing inactivation process.

The aircraft carrier, USS Enterprise (CVN 65), was moved Saturday from Newport News’ Pier 2 to Dry Dock 11, where the super carrier was constructed over 60 years ago.

(Excerpt) Read more at gcaptain.com ...


TOPICS: Culture/Society; Foreign Affairs; Government; US: District of Columbia; US: Rhode Island
KEYWORDS: bige
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To: artichokegrower

She isn’t a day over 55. Launched in 1960.


41 posted on 05/07/2015 9:23:07 AM PDT by Blood of Tyrants (A free society canÂ’t let the parameters of its speech be set by murderous extremists.)
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To: rlmorel

I feel that way about USS Ogden, LPD 5, and I was in Army armor, transported aboard off Vietnam but for a few days.

Went down to San Diego about 25 years later, invited by the XO, and had a truly great time sharing her history with my daughter.

But alas, now she’s gone to the scrapyard, to know no other crew ever again.

Another beauty gone.


42 posted on 05/07/2015 9:52:02 AM PDT by onedoug
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To: rlmorel
What's worse, they sank it.

Beautiful lady. I wonder who got the ship's bell.

43 posted on 05/07/2015 11:52:06 AM PDT by onedoug
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To: onedoug

I prefer it this way...I would far rather have any ship I served on be used as a target, and she can rest on the ocean floor in one piece, more or less, after having provided a valuable service to her country.

Kind of like going down fighting...:)


44 posted on 05/07/2015 12:57:39 PM PDT by rlmorel ("National success by the Democratic Party equals irretrievable ruin." Ulysses S. Grant.)
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To: onedoug

Far better than being broken up for scrap!


45 posted on 05/07/2015 12:58:15 PM PDT by rlmorel ("National success by the Democratic Party equals irretrievable ruin." Ulysses S. Grant.)
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To: Talisker
You forgot to consider inflation. $451 million in 1958 is almost 3.7 BILLION in 2015.

Yes, socialist FedGov policies have truly destroyed our currency ...

46 posted on 05/07/2015 1:05:19 PM PDT by NorthMountain ("The time has come", the Walrus said, "to talk of many things")
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To: rlmorel

That was me too. I feel the same way now.


47 posted on 05/07/2015 1:22:19 PM PDT by 3boysdad (The very elect.)
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To: Last Dakotan
We’ll just call the Ford the Enterprise.

The third one in the class will be named Enterprise.

48 posted on 05/07/2015 1:31:13 PM PDT by DoodleDawg
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To: artichokegrower
".. It's CVN-65, the USS Enterprise. It's fine. They aren't using them anymore. That flattop just got decommissioned."

"Skuld.."

"And Lind, you won't believe the nuclear power plant on that sucker! It's got *eight* A2W nuke plants! That's four times more than any other ship before or since, ever! It's crazy overpowered! Crank those eight nuke plants full tilt and that thing would fly like a speedboat! They never did it.. too powerful, it'd break the keel! Wow, that is so cool! Admiral Hyman Rickover was totally insane when he spec'ed that mother. I mean, he's just like me! I love that guy! Pity he's dead and all. I'd love to talk to him. Next time they should build a flattop with *sixteen* A2Ws, or the newer A4Ws. With that much power I could probably levitate that sucker like in that Avengers movie, heh. I bet Admiral Rickover would let me do it too! If he was alive, I mean. Hey, that flattop is decommissioned now! Nobody will miss it. I'll just sneak inside with Banpei, we'll do the mods, then fly it out from Norfolk Naval Base, and voilà, we got ourselves an air-mobile defense platform! Whaddya think? Cool, huh?"

"Skuld, just stop."

"But it would be so cool!"

"I said stop!"

[ Excerpt from Chapter 15 of The Fifth Kind of Love ]

49 posted on 05/07/2015 1:32:11 PM PDT by Gideon7
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To: 3boysdad

It is called getting smarter as you get older...:)

Thanks for your service, FRiend...


50 posted on 05/07/2015 1:39:08 PM PDT by rlmorel ("National success by the Democratic Party equals irretrievable ruin." Ulysses S. Grant.)
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To: misanthrope; moehoward; aomagrat; paddles; matginzac; onedoug; Blood of Tyrants; 3boysdad; ...
On one of my transits in the Kennedy across the Atlantic, we had pulled out of Norfolk, and were into the first night out at sea.

I hit the rack (my rack was DIRECTLY under the #3 wire, top rack...with a 1MC between me and the underside of the deck!) and woke up sometime around 0300 in the dark, and I heard this very loudly:

"WHAM WHAM WHAM WHAM WHAM WHAM WHAM WHAM WHAM WHAM WHAM WHAM WHAM WHAM WHAM WHAM WHAM WHAM WHAM WHAM WHAM WHAM WHAM WHAM WHAM WHAM"

I just did this experiment to recreate it exactly: That is 26 "WHAMS" and do that in six seconds. Time it! Now imagine hearing that in the dark, and the guy in the rack below you is hitting the underside of your rack with a large encyclopedia with each wham...that is what it felt like!

I got dressed and went down to the fantail...it was awesome.

A mountain of white water...(they wouldn't let us go out there, but they let us Airdales walk up to the roped off part and look...:)

And I fully expect the Big E was even more impressive!

51 posted on 05/07/2015 1:58:30 PM PDT by rlmorel ("National success by the Democratic Party equals irretrievable ruin." Ulysses S. Grant.)
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To: artichokegrower

Anyone remember this show?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_360%C2%B0


52 posted on 05/07/2015 2:04:53 PM PDT by Hillarys Gate Cult (Liberals make unrealistic demands on reality and reality doesn't oblige them.)
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To: Talisker

Defueling is a straightforward and relatively simple process. It’s the dismantling of each of the eight reactor plants that poses serious challenges.

When a submarine is scrapped, the entire reactor plant portion of the hull is cut from the boat intact in one piece....welded shut on the ends, then sent to a lined pit at a facility in Washington State where it will ultimately be buried. The entire defueled reactor plant goes in-tact....vessel, pumps, valves, steam generators, everything.

The Enterprise is the first nuclear carrier, and the first to be scrapped. They are going into uncharted territory, with the pitfalls of having parts of the ship that have never been accessed or inspected since new construction. Each individual reactor plant (eight in all), will have to be cut out and sealed. Don’t know if there were provisions for this when the ship was built....but they may be having to engineer the process from scratch.

Then consider the logistics....the reactor plants are buried deep within the ship. I would assume it would be easier to cut up the portion of the ship above each plant before removal, but I’m not privy to the current plans. Either way, these things are very complex and require a great deal of planning and engineering, which is very expensive in and of itself.

I’m guessing the current projected cost is on the low side, and will probably rise significantly. But...much of the cost will be the learning curve, and later on down the line as more carriers are scrapped, the process will improve and cost less.


53 posted on 05/07/2015 2:10:49 PM PDT by rottndog ('Live Free Or Die' Ain't just words on a bumber sticker...or a tagline.)
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To: rlmorel

Ri, hubs did a cruise on the big E and was similarly situated...right under the flight deck. And he was on the Group Staff...
To this day, the man sleeps through hurricanes...


54 posted on 05/07/2015 2:41:28 PM PDT by matginzac
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To: rlmorel

I guess you’re right. Just came as sort of a shock.

Best.


55 posted on 05/07/2015 3:52:17 PM PDT by onedoug
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To: NorthMountain
You forgot to consider inflation. $451 million in 1958 is almost 3.7 BILLION in 2015. Yes, socialist FedGov policies have truly destroyed our currency ...

Excellent point.

56 posted on 05/07/2015 5:30:30 PM PDT by Talisker (One who commands, must obey.)
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To: rottndog

Thanks for the info, I didn’t consider the radioactivity of the entire reactor system. I was just thinking about the fuel rods, and perhaps the containment chamber. Nor did I know there are eight (!) reactors on board.

Its a shame they can’t just re-fuel and go out again. But I guess there are a lot of worn-out parts throughout the ship after almost 60 years.


57 posted on 05/07/2015 5:33:39 PM PDT by Talisker (One who commands, must obey.)
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