We’ll just call the Ford the Enterprise.
“ongoing inactivation”????
Apparently English is a dying language...
We didn't all die.
/johnny
Yeah, definitely feeling old.
The BFF of carriers.
Wow. I do feel, as many sailors do, a sentimentality towards ships, and even though I never served on her, the Enterprise means something more, and not some schmaltzy Star Trek sentimentality.
I definitely feel a tie through her back to CV-6. CVN-65 was a worthy successor.
Granted, some ships suck, some you don’t want to be on at a given time, but if you lived on it, sailed on it, or fought on it, it does generate a tie to you.
Even if you sometimes hated being on it...:)
I just watched the video...I found it depressing.
Sigh.
What!?
The Original Cost to Build was $451.3 million!
Defueling and inactiviation costs 65% MORE than building her!
I was a shipboard nuclear engineer who worked for NNS during the Second Refueling back in 1969 - 1971. We went on Builder’s Sea Trials in January 1971. The trials took place off of the Virginia Capes and lasted about four days. Hundreds of shipyard personnel were aboard the ship to support sea trials testing and data recording. In those days all reactor operational data was recorded around the clock by real people with clipboards, data sheets, and ballpoint pens. The Navy crew operated the ship and the shipyard engineers recorded data, ensured that equipment was operating properly, and provided expertise if equipment needed evaluated or adjusted. Anyhow, Enterprise was escorted by 3 or 4 U.S. Navy escorts out of Norfolk Navy Base -— fossil fueled destroyers and cruisers. We were also shadowed by 2 or 3 Russian cruisers that were there to see how well Enterprise would do on its first “at sea” following refueling. The Ruskies would also make runs on our escort vessels and basically be a pain in the butt. It was the middle of the afternoon on day three of trials, a clear but cold January day 50 miles off the coast of Virginia, I was “off-watch” and up in the “Island” at about the 010 level, “sightseeing”. As I recall we were running at AHEAD FULL bell. After days of being shadowed by the Russians, the Captain of the Enterprise had enough “cat and mouse”, and ordered an All AHEAD FLANK bell. That made two years of refueling and overhaul efforts dramatically worthwhile. As I watched over the stern of Enterprise, over 250,000 horsepower run through four propellers caused the “Big E” to surge forward, leave an unbelievable wake behind it and just run away from all of the accompanying ships, both U.S. and Russian. They tried to stay up with the “big E” (I could see them all sending up black smoke from their stacks as they all also rang up FLANK BELLS). But it was of no use. Thirty minutes later they were all but mere specks on the horizon. It almost brought tears to my eyes and definitely put goose bumps on my arms. Ah, fond memories, 44 years ago!
Proud to say I made a few tours with her during the late 60’s during the Viet Nam war. I remember those days like it was yesterday.
I served on the Enterprise 1983-1986. W Division, Weapons Dept. I made the first and only arrested landing on a carrier on her as a passenger in a C-1. My first flight in a helicopter was to her. I became a shellback on her. Pearl Harbor, Olongapo, Hong Kong, Singapore, Karachi, Naples, Toulon, Fremantle, lots of memories.
Heartfelt Bump....
Thank you for this sad, but still wonderful thread, and thank you all - for your service.
Fly Navy.
Lucky Tatt, who grew up with carriers and air groups, and so many “nasal radiator uncles”...
Wouldn’t trade my childhood for a million dollars.
Me too...
I signed up to serve in the Navy on the Big E when she was in Alameda.
Hard to think of her not on station anymore....sigh.
You can really develop an attachment to a carrier when it’s a night, EMCON recovery and it’s the only place you have to land.
She isn’t a day over 55. Launched in 1960.
"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 ]