CVN-77 nearing completion
Posted on 10/03/2006 8:06:52 AM PDT by Jeff Head
CVN-77 to be Christened on October 7th, 2006
From the Northrop Grumman site.
On Saturday, October 7, 2006, Northrop Grumman Newport News will christen the nation’s 10th and final Nimitz-class aircraft carrier, George H. W. Bush (CVN 77). The ship’s namesake and 41st President of the United States, George H. W. Bush, is scheduled to attend the ceremony along with his wife Barbara and their daughter, Doro Bush Koch, Mrs. Koch also serves as the ship’s sponsor and will do the traditional honor of breaking a bottle of American sparkling wine across the ship’s bow during the ceremony. Employees of Northrop Grumman Newport News and their families are invited. The general public is also invited to the ceremony. Visit the links below for additional information.Here are some of the latest construction pictures...a beautiful site to behold:
CVN-77 nearing completion
CVN-77 props added
CVN-77 Island lift
CVN-77 ready for christening
CVN-77 another view of CVN-77 ready for christening
Is this already in a testing phase or is it just theoretical? It seems to me that something like that would be vital to protecting the ship from anti-ship missiles. My worst nightmare is a huge number of chinese Silkworms (and whatever they've replaced them with lately) that our Phalanx weapons can't engage all at once.
Yes, I know...and I think it is, IMHO, rediculous. The USS Shanksville, Stockdale, America, United States...there are many more fitting names IMHO. I hope that bill gets held up.
Isn't that a jolly thought?
As to the directed energy or other exotic weapons. We have been testing the theories for a long time. If there is enough power, there is the possibility. But as yet it is just a rumor that the CVN21 program will utilize such.
I believe a rail-gun for future destroyers and cruisers is perhaps more likely sooner.
Available names I like are
America
All I can think of off the top of my head.
USS Shanksville. I like it. First battle in GWOT fought in sovereign American airspace. And we won.
Sort of surprising there isn't one already. There is a TR, aka "The Big Stick".
Still I think we should go back to naming carriers after famous earlier ships. "Enterprise" goes way back, as does "Constellation", "Lexington", "Saratoga" and "United States" (there was once supposed to be a carrier, the first of a class, by that name but it got canceled. If the name weren't still in use by the original holder, the "USS Constitution" would make a great name for the next class of carriers.
I always thought "U.S.S. Independence" had a nice ring to it.
Cool name, but in the Air Force, we have another name for this type of ship... "Target"
I bet my brother will be pleased, though. He's a Navy Carrier puke, served on the Nimitz, and the Constellation. It is a pretty thing, though! God Bless it, the folks who constructed it, and it's future crews.
Before the advent of the so called "Fleet boats" in the 1930s, subs didn't have names, just class and number. Lots of "S-boats" were still in use when the war broke out, IIRC.
I am in SD temporarily -- is that the Reagan I see on the other side of the bay when I am going to the airport?
The story says that their daughter, and the current President's sister, Doro, will do the honors.
I seem to remember that Barbara has already Christened a ship, but I haven't a clue as to which one.
Laura christened the USS Texas. Don't know about the others.
I suspect it won't work out that way, although it could. More likely the next *class* will be the George W. Bush class. Not bad for an Air Guard pilot.
At least GHW Bush flew Avengers off of Carriers in WW-II, at one point being the youngest pilot in the Navy.
Well they do resemble cigars after all.
Exactly!
Seems very appropriate for a ship named "Kennedy".
Yes, she was first, but was never intended for true operational use. She was an experimental ship, converted from a collier. Intended to provide experience in operating a carrier.
Lexington and Saratoga were built on battle cruiser hulls. Ranger was the first carrier designed as such from the keel up. However, they tried to make a smaller cheaper carrier, (sound familiar?) and it never really worked out well.
First successful purpose built class was the Yorktown class, consisting of Yorktown, Enterprise and Hornet. Yorktown was sunk at Midway, Enterprise was damaged but survived the war. Hornet, from which the Doolittle raid was launched, was sunk late in the war, but it took 16 torpedoes, both US and Japanese, plus bombs and a Kamikaze, to do the job. (She was damaged at Santa Cruz, and had to be abandoned due to approach of Japanese forces. US tried to sink her, couldn't, Japanese tried to tow her, couldn't, and they finally sank her with torpedoes.)
At least Ford, like GHW Bush, was a Navy man. Bush even flew Avenger bombers off of carriers in WW-II.
I was trying to work cocaine into that somehow but I just couldn't do it. I was thinking mirrors and razor blades but the white lines...thats good.
"Don't come a knockin' if the USS Clinton is a rockin'!"
Do you think the entire flight line would be covered in astro turf?
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