USS Carl Vinson (CVN-70)
History of the USS Carl Vinson Aircraft Carrier
The USS Carl Vinson was ordered for the U.S. Navy on April 5, 1974. Her keel was laid down by Newport News Shipbuilding and Dry Dock Company in Virginia on October 11, 1975. She was launched on March 15, 1980 and commissioned on March 13, 1982. The carrier is one of few U.S. Navy ships to be named after a person who was still alive at the time of her christening.
After shakedown, USS Carl Vinson got underway on March 1, 1983 for an around-the-world cruise to her new homeport at Naval Air Station Alameda in California, where she arrived eight months later. She took part in the 1984 RIMPAC exercise before she departed for a Western Pacific deployment on October 14, 1984. The aircraft carrier was in the Indian Ocean for 107 consecutive days from January to April 1985.
Later that year, the USS Carl Vinson lent her air crew and several of her F-14As for the filming of the movie Top Gun. The ship herself appeared in the opening scenes of the 1988 movie The Presidio. She would later appear in the 2000 film Behind Enemy Lines as well.
USS Carl Vinson took part in several exercises during May and June 1986, including the annual RIMPAC exercise. After she departed for her Western Pacific deployment on August 12, 1986, she became the first carrier to ever operate in the Bering Sea. She operated in the Indian Ocean and the North Arabian Sea before transiting the Bering Sea again to return home to Naval Air Station Alameda in California.
On June 15, 1988, the USS Carl Vinson headed to the Persian Gulf. While she was there, the carrier helped escort U.S. flagged tankers in the area before returning home in December.
In September 1989, USS Carl Vinson took part in PACEX ’89, the largest peacetime naval exercise since World War II. During the exercise, she operated in the Bering Sea and the Aleutian Islands before leading her battle group south into the Sea of Japan and the Pacific Ocean.
The USS Carl Vinson departed California on February 1, 1990 for a tour of duty that brought her to Hawaii, Japan, the Philippines, Diego Garcia, Australia, Singapore and Hong Kong. She carried with her the last deployed squadron of A-7 Corsairs, delivering them to San Diego, California before she returned home to Alameda in September. The aircraft carrier then put in at Bremerton, Washington for a complex overhaul.
In February 1994, USS Carl Vinson sailed for the Persian Gulf to join in Operation Southern Watch. During this time, she hosted the change of command ceremonies for the Commander-in-Chief of the Pacific Fleet. The carrier returned home on August 17.
From there, the USS Carl Vinson took part in Exercise Ke Koa and ceremonies that commemorated the end of World War II in the Pacific. She was visited by President Bill Clinton in Hawaii, and she launched 12 World War II-era planes as part of the ceremonies.
USS Carl Vinson returned to the Persian Gulf to support Operation Southern Watch and Operation Desert Strike in May 1996. Before she headed home in November, she participated in Exercise Rugged Nautilus.
When Caifornia’s Naval Air Station Alameda was closed, the USS Carl Vinson was transferred to Bremerton, Washington, arriving at her new homeport on January 17, 1997. After participating in RIMPAC ’98, the carrier headed back to the Persian Gulf. From December until March 1999, she launched air strikes in support of Operation Desert Fox and Operation Southern Watch. Upon her return home in July, she entered the dry dock at Puget Sound Naval Shipyard for $230 million in upgrades.
In July 2001, USS Carl Vinson got underway for the Persian Gulf in support of Operation Southern Watch. When terrorists attacked the United States on September 11, 2001, she changed course and headed to the North Arabian Sea. The carrier launched the first air strikes of Operation Enduring Freedom on October 7. Over the next 72 days, she launched over 4,000 combat sorties and earned the Afghanistan Campaign Medal. She also earned an Excellent rating from her Operational Reactor Safeguard Examination (ORSE), a Battle E Ribbon and a Navy unit Commendation during this deployment. The aircraft carrier visited Singapore for Christmas before arriving home on January 23, 2002.
The USS Carl Vinson spent January 2003 until September 2003 visiting ports in Hawaii, Guam, South Korea, Japan, Australia, Hong Kong and Singapore. The following year, she won the Marjorie Sterrett Battleship Fund Award.
USS Carl Vinson departed Bremerton, Washington in January 2005 for an around-the-world cruise. During this time, she spent several months in the Persian Gulf supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom and making port calls at Singapore, Guam, Bahrain, the United Arab Emirates, Greece and Portugal. She returned to her new homeport in Norfolk, Virginia.
The USS Carl Vinson is still operating on active duty as of July 2009. She will transition back to the Pacific Ocean by early 2010 per the COMPACFLT decision of March 2007, with her new homeport located at Naval Air Station North Island in California.
The use of asbestos was common in shipbuilding components for much of the 20th Century because of its resistance to heat, fire, water and corrosion. Because of their asbestos exposure onboard ship and in the shipyards, seaman, shipyard workers and longshoreman are at risk for developing asbestos-related diseases like mesothelioma.
Sources include:
John Hedley-Whyte and Debra R Milamed, "Asbestos and Ship-Building: Fatal Consequences," Ulster Med. J. 77(3):191-200 (Sep 2008) Naval Historical Center, Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships—USS Carl Vinson
