Final days for the Big E

The warships of today's navies, current naval events, ships in the news, etc.
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Karl Heidenreich
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Final days for the Big E

Post by Karl Heidenreich »

USS Enterprise retirement will be speed up, according to the Chief of Naval Operations Admiral Roughead, to late 2012 or early 2013 instead of the planned 2014.
Being commisioned in November 25, 1961 she would have served 52 years to the USN which would be a record, I think. The Big E, a veteran of those early Cold War years of Ike (she was planned and built under him), Kennedy, Johnson and during those dark awful years of Nixon, Ford and Carter, was an important instrument of victory for Reagan and then a support for the USN during Bush Sr, Clinton, Bush Jr and now this guy.
Sad that she has to go. It seems that the big problem are the expedinture in her 8 reactors whilst a new CVN uses only two. If her retirement is for 2013 then the USN CVN fleet will be diminished by one unit until 2015 when the new super carriers of the Gerald Ford Class came into service.
Wonder if the Navy has planned to name another ship Enterprise any time soon. I hope they will do. Then she will be great operating with the British sisters HMS Queen Elizabeth and Prince of Wales.
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RF
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Re: Final days for the Big E

Post by RF »

Does the US Navy have on its roster a Captain James Tiberious Kirk to take command??????
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Re: Final days for the Big E

Post by skipper »

Jim Morrison. the lead singer of the band the Doors, had a special relationship with the Big E. His father was her C.O at one point. (one of the youngest officers, at his time, ever to reach the rank of Captain). I wish I could bring up the picture at this site; but there is a very famous picture of Morrison standing with some gunners' mates on the stern. The photograph was taken well before the beginning of the Doors.
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Nelson Ott
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Re: Final days for the Big E

Post by Nelson Ott »

I hope the "Big E" does not have the same fate as the original Enterprise. The most condecorated ship in the US Navy history and a true hero and survivor of the Pacific War being unceremoniously scrapped in 1958. :x

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Nelson
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Re: Final days for the Big E

Post by Bgile »

I expect her to be scrapped due to the extreme expense of safeing the eight reactors without tearing the ship apart. Because of that, she is unlikely to ever be a museum ship.
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Karl Heidenreich
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Re: Final days for the Big E

Post by Karl Heidenreich »

That´s sad. Very sad.
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Re: Final days for the Big E

Post by Bgile »

Karl Heidenreich wrote:That´s sad. Very sad.
I suppose, but we already have so many museum ships in the US ... there is a limit to how many can be supported by tourist dollars. I think the Iowa is still in limbo.
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RF
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Re: Final days for the Big E

Post by RF »

And also a rather undignified ending for some of these old warhorses.....
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Karl Heidenreich
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Re: Final days for the Big E

Post by Karl Heidenreich »

Bgile:
I suppose, but we already have so many museum ships in the US ... there is a limit to how many can be supported by tourist dollars. I think the Iowa is still in limbo.
Well, I will rather prefer to have the Big E as a musseum for all those years at the Cold War and for being the first nuclear CVN instead of Iowa. Of those carrier escorts we have already Missouri and New Jersey as musseums so why another one? But Big E is the vessel that survived the Cold War and fought after it. She deserves better.
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Re: Final days for the Big E

Post by Bgile »

Karl Heidenreich wrote:Of those carrier escorts
Couldn't avoid that little dig, could you?

If Bismarck had been in the USN what do you suppose she'd have been used for? Nothing?
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Karl Heidenreich
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Re: Final days for the Big E

Post by Karl Heidenreich »

Bgile:

Couldn't avoid that little dig, could you?

If Bismarck had been in the USN what do you suppose she'd have been used for? Nothing?
Bgile, sorry but I will answer in order:

To the first question: No, it was too tempting and I´m weak.

To the second: Bismarck would have been sent, with Prinz Eugen, to the Bikini Atoll and blasted with an A Bomb but would have not sunk only to be torpedoed some 6 times before capzising in a last heroic contribution against the Bolsheviks. It´s remains would have been considered a temple to the greatest battleship of all times.

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Karl
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Re: Final days for the Big E

Post by Bgile »

Karl,

The answer you were trying to avoid is that she would have been fitted out with multiple bofors mounts and sent to escort carriers, just like the US battleships. But you would not have called her a carrier escort because she was Bismarck. Actually, come to think of it, I'm wrong. If she was a USN ship you would have figured out lots of things wrong with her and your favorite ship would be Scharnhorst. :D
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Karl Heidenreich
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Re: Final days for the Big E

Post by Karl Heidenreich »

Yeah, you are right. Would Bismarck have been part of the USN she would likely would have taken Washington place in Guadalcanal on the night of November 14-15 and it would have been her the one that sinks old Kirishima, having on her score an old BC. Then her crew would regularly fight in bars against those of the South Dak and it would have been scrapped in the early 50ies to build some Buicks.

And what I´m gonna said will win me a lot of enemies but... I don´t like Schanhorst that much. If Bismarck would have been USN then my favorite BB would have been Warspite.
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RF
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Re: Final days for the Big E

Post by RF »

If Bismarck were part of the USN - wouldn't those 15 inch turrets be taken out and replaced with 16 inch? The USN I believe didn't use 15 inch calibre?
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paulcadogan
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Re: Final days for the Big E

Post by paulcadogan »

Karl Heidenreich wrote:Then her crew would regularly fight in bars against those of the South Dak and it would have been scrapped in the early 50ies to build some Buicks.
A USN Bismarck would have been a cruiser - named after a city - and her crew might have gotten along pretty well with South Dakota's - after all Bismarck is a North Dakota city! :D

As for the Big E, great thought to preserve her - especially to make up for CV6, but I agree with Bgile..the $$$$$$$$$$$$$$$
Qui invidet minor est - He who envies is the lesser man
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