Wow I am reading these notes in April of 08. I sailed on JFK as the Electrical Maintenance Officer from 4/71 to 12/74. I guess they really let it go down hill from what I read. We had won a few Red engineering E's during that time. Made a few extended Med deployments, but I thought it was in god shape when I left in Dec 74.

Posted by: Bruce at April 7, 2008 08:44 AM

How bout the #65 ? ..... Anyword on her?

Posted by: Cpt Kirk at July 29, 2007 11:48 PM

Isn't there already a carrier halfway built to replace her?

Posted by: TB at July 27, 2007 01:54 PM

 Yup we have another simailar thought carrier walking down the ways to sit in the ocean with all the ideas the Navy has to fill their obligations to defend our world.

The Navy has totally lossed it's focus in puting all their bets because of congressional reasons on the whole supercarrier/deathstar thing.

In WW2 we had the concept of jeep carriers to augment the major ones.

It is an idea that should be revisited. 

Posted by: Observer at July 28, 2007 03:43 PM

Isn't there already a carrier halfway built to replace her?

Posted by: TB at July 27, 2007 01:54 PM

In reference to my earlier comment on the steam preheat coils thing , it wasn't just about the supplies available on the Big John herself it was the whole Navy supply system. We used them all.

The Navy looked at replacing them with electric heaters but the Kennedy didn't have enough reserve power to do the switch out.

Heck it was pushing limits just to carry the new upgrades for tactically important systems because of the old design people dragged out just to put this thing in the water.

I don't want to tell stories of how many times I have replaced things on this POS just because they overloaded the design capabilities due to new stuff being installed.

This was a ship born in politics and survived in politics, nothing more nothing less.

For more than almost a generation this has been an under the radar bad story that never saw the light of day.

The Navy had their own reasons to hide it, because of going up against the Kennedy clan was a suicide mission with little chance of success, especially when this thing was built.

After that they only wanted it to float.

Review the full history of this ship, for years she was stuck in almost a non use status.

I have been there and seen it.

Posted by: Observer at July 27, 2007 01:19 PM

I not just a johnny come lately here, I have about 10 years or more history with this crudship.

You have to remember the whole history of this love boat.

The Kennedy's demanded a conventional carrier when we had already switched to nukes because they didn't want to put that name on a nuke carrier.

The Navy had to dig out old plans to build this thing and adapt them for stuff that wasn't even manufactured any more.

She had a terrible maintenance history and anyone with a computer history of what has to be done after x number of years could do great projections of how bad it would be if you finally decided to take action down the line.

After she came out of Philly and was pieced back together just enough to make her run she was in almost a non active status like a reserve carrier or the ugly girl at the prom.

I don't have the full stats , but this ship has probably at least challenged the record for the longest time for an active Navy ship to hit a dry dock. You can't do sea valve work when afloat without a whole bunch of stuff going on to do that sort of thing.

Heck years ago the Navy was questioning the cost of keeping this thing going when oil was less than $20 bucks a barrel.

Examine the total life cycle costs of this ship and eyes will be opened.

The last almost year long fix on this thing I did cost well over a 1/4 Billion bucks. Yes that's with a B and some reports I have seen put the real number near 1/2 a B.

We can do better.

Posted by: Observer at July 27, 2007 12:40 PM

For all who want this POS saved for other uses think again.

I was a shipyard worker who spent many many hours in the vast overhauls of that crap bucket here at Mayport.

She came out of Philly with half her parts sitting in the hanger bay when they shut down that place.

Whole rafts of work supposedly done was gun decked just to push her out the door.

The major overhaul we did after she failed readiness tests was putting glue on the bad parts to just make her float.

I could tell stories for weeks of how this thing should have been scrapped years ago since she never had a good maintenance cycle and other retired carriers were in much better shape than she was.

Ask anyone, you cant go that long between major overhauls and not expect a laundry list of fixes that will cost more than building a new carrier to replace it.

It only survived because of the Kennedy name.

I saw tanks split seams just filling them with fuel. It was a rust bucket to no end and hull doublers were welded on because the frames that held the plates together were rusted away in the void areas and 90% gone.

I have seen places where a 3/8 nut could be thrown through what was supposed to be ballistic bulkheads because of all the rust and corrosion.

I personally have poked fingers through vent systems and that system alone should have been totally ripped out and replaced.

We used the entire inventory of steam coils in the vent system and only replace the worst of the worst. You could accidentally lean up against one and bury yourself up to your armpit.

What burns my toast is I worked on upgrades to that ship that were just putting lipstick on a pig.

They should have retired her and kept one of the better maintained other carriers than kept up with this whole worthless mess.

Posted by: Observer at July 27, 2007 11:54 AM

The JFK received an overhaul in Philly back in the mid nineties. Not the full SLEP - but a good going over. She must have a lot of life left in her.

I really hope we don't sink her as a test. Since it takes about 5-8 years to build a flattop we'd better have some in reserve in case an enemy comes up with a good anti-ship missile (Sunburn, maybe?)

Posted by: Emas at July 27, 2007 11:23 AM

I wonder how long it will be before they have the JFK under water just like the America?I'm sorry,I just cannot come up with any gee whiz modern technology reasons why the JFK shouldn't still be on active duty.I've read where they are suggesting building "mini" aircraft carriers to launch UAVs & UCAVs.Hmmmm,didn't we have these mini carriers? But,we scrapped or sunk 6 of the 7 Iwo Jima Class Amphibious Assault Ships(twenty-one knot thump be damned).Now please,somebody give me a gee whiz modern technology reason why we needed to do that?The same goes with the Tarawa Class Amphibious Assault Ships.I'm sure they have a date with Davy Jones Locker too,& then we'll be told we need to build "new" carriers for the UAV & UCAV squadrons.
Please,will the idol worshippers of modern technology give me an answer to my question? Oh,& don't get me started on the Iowa Class Battleships & the Des Moines Class Cruisers that were retired & in the case of the Des Moines Cruisers,two were scrapped.I guess we didn't need those "big" guns.

Posted by: Roy Smith at July 26, 2007 10:39 PM