The Ghost Ships of Suisun Bay

[mjp28]

The Ghost Ships of Suisun Bay....kind of creepy or sad in a way.


http://beta.news.yahoo.com/photos/th...ideshow/#crsl=

[mjp28]

In Suisun Bay, 30 miles northeast of San Francisco, there lies a vast ghostly fleet of almost 100 abandoned Navy and merchant ships. These vessels, known as the Mothball Fleet, served in four US wars and are currently awaiting disposal. (Photo courtesy Scott Haefner/Scotthaefner.com)

[Rockwolf66]

I used to drive by the fleet on my way to pay my union dues. It's a pitty that they are just sitting there insted of doing something.


Still they have been in at least one film that I know of.


Hopefully someone can get a copy of "The Killer Elite" sometime in the future.

[funkychinaman]

I still try to catch glances at the old Philly Naval Yard when I go by Philly on 95. (It was a lot easier when I wasn't driving and trying to look and drive 75 on a busy highway at the same time.) Some of the old regulars are gone. The America and the Inchon to the bottom, the Des Moines to the scrappers. New ones, like the old JFK and the Saipan, come to take their place. I once tried to go in with my ROTC ID, but no dice.

[mjp28]

Kind of reminds me of the BB 62, the New Jersey my dad was CPO on in WWII and later called back up during the Korean War, floating history with those 9 big 16" guns.

My dad said when they'd put them all broadside and fire the ship would actually move sideways in the water.

New Jersey was decommissioned for the last time in 1991, having earned a Navy Unit Commendation for service in Vietnam and 19 battle and campaign stars for combat operations during World War II, the Korean War, the Vietnam War, the Lebanese Civil War, and service in the Persian Gulf.

After a brief retention in the mothball fleet, she was donated to the Home Port Alliance in Camden, New Jersey, and began her career as a museum ship 15 October 2001.

[Krel]

I'm sure the Federal authorities appreciate him documenting his crimes in writing, and photos for all to see.

David.

[funkychinaman]

Originally Posted by mjp28

Kind of reminds me of the BB 62, the New Jersey my dad was CPO on in WWII and later called back up during the Korean War, floating history with those 9 big 16" guns.

My dad said when they'd put them all broadside and fire the ship would actually move sideways in the water.

New Jersey was decommissioned for the last time in 1991, having earned a Navy Unit Commendation for service in Vietnam and 19 battle and campaign stars for combat operations during World War II, the Korean War, the Vietnam War, the Lebanese Civil War, and service in the Persian Gulf.

After a brief retention in the mothball fleet, she was donated to the Home Port Alliance in Camden, New Jersey, and began her career as a museum ship 15 October 2001.

I've gone to see her a few times. If you don't want to go aboard, or just don't want to go into Camden, you can see her when driving on I-95 S in Philly.

When I was in HS, I was a member of a group that tried to bring her to North Jersey, near Liberty State Park. Ultimately, this group lost the bid, as the state cited the proximity of the USS Intrepid, the location of the Philly Naval Yard, where she was built, and to try to revitalize the area in Camden.

[S&Wshooter]

Originally Posted by mjp28

In Suisun Bay, 30 miles northeast of San Francisco, there lies a vast ghostly fleet of almost 100 abandoned Navy and merchant ships. These vessels, known as the Mothball Fleet, served in four US wars and are currently awaiting disposal. (Photo courtesy Scott Haefner/Scotthaefner.com)

But doesn't Mothballing a fleet mean that they are just kept in reserve just in case they are needed?

My father told me a while back about how there are a bunch of US Navy ships in Beaumont that have been pumped full of Nitrogen and had all their hatches sealed up until they are needed

[mjp28]

Originally Posted by S&Wshooter

But doesn't Mothballing a fleet mean that they are just kept in reserve just in case they are needed?

My father told me a while back about how there are a bunch of US Navy ships in Beaumont that have been pumped full of Nitrogen and had all their hatches sealed up until they are needed

Technically yes, that's how my dad was on the New Jersey in WWII and called back to active duty in Korea, they just bring them back online.

With air power and missles (and age plus budgets) some ships will just rust away then need scrapped.

[funkychinaman]

Originally Posted by S&Wshooter

But doesn't Mothballing a fleet mean that they are just kept in reserve just in case they are needed?

My father told me a while back about how there are a bunch of US Navy ships in Beaumont that have been pumped full of Nitrogen and had all their hatches sealed up until they are needed

It's fairly rare for ships to come back from mothballing. Battleships were lucky because they were all still fairly new and no one was building any new ones. A bunch of (also fairly new) carriers were also mothballed after the war, and most of them never made it back to service.

I'm glad all four found homes. I have to get around to reading "A Glimpse of Hell," which was about the explosion. I bought it a few months back, but I haven't touched it.