post America’s Hero Ships, coming soon to a conflict near you

July 22nd, 2008

Filed under: News, Uncategorized — admin @ 7:25 pm

US Navy “Never Forgets”

As the 7th anniversary of 9-11 nears the US Navy is kicking it into high gear with 5 tribute ships to commemorate the victims of that terrible day as well as service members who have fallen in the war on terror. Continuing the great naval tradition of naming future combat vessels after pivotal battles and Great American Heroes, here are the “Hero Ships” that will remind us all to ”Never Forget”

The Sisters

USS New York LPD-21

Motto “Never Forget”, “Strength through Sacrifice”
Made with 7.5 tons of steel from the World trade Center in her bow, she will lead the way for her sisters and brothers.
www.ussnewyork.com

USS Arlington LPD-24

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:LPD-17_Class.jpg Photo by wikipedia.org
Named in honor of the men and women who lost their lives at the Pentagon.  LPD-24 incorporates metal from the Pentagon’s steel frame in her construction
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/USS_Arlington_%28LPD-24%29

USS Somerset LPD-25

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:LPD-17_Class.jpgPhoto by wikipedia.org

Knowing that they were on a suicide mission, Flight 93’s brave passengers and crew bravely fought back and prevented their aircraft from reaching a populated area and causing more deaths. Incorporated in the hull is steel from the dragline that was in the field where their aircraft crashed
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/USS_Somerset_%28LPD-25%29
 

The Brothers
USS Jason Dunham DDG-109

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:USS_Jason_Dunham;050110901.jpgPhoto by wikipedia.org

Named after the Marine who lost his life in Iraq after he threw himself on a grenade to save his men. Jason was awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor posthumously on January 11th 2007. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jason_L._Dunham 

USS Michael Murphy DDG-112

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:USS_Michael_Murphy_(DDG_112)_photo_illustration.jpgPhoto by wikipedia.org
Named after the US Navy Seal from Long Island who despite being under extremely heavy enemy fire moved into open ground to radio for extraction for his team. Even after being mortally wounded during the call he ended the conversation with a courteous “Thank You”. President Bush presented Michael’s Congressional Medal of Honor to his parents  on October 22, 2007.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michael_P._Murphy

post USS New York LPD-21 Commissioning, 9/12/09

July 7th, 2008

Filed under: Commentary, News — admin @ 8:54 pm

USSNY Commissioning

September 12th 2009

by Scott Koen

Forged from the steel of the World Trade Center, the USS New York will be commissioned into military service with the US Navy in New York City on September 12th 2009. Exactly 8 years and a day from those tragic events of Sept, 11, 2001, She comes home, the WTC reborn.  No other ship in world history will carry the strength and sacrifice this ship exhibits and she will always remind us to “Never Forget”

When you take metal from the World Trade Center and put it in a ship called New York  you are recycling more than steel, you are recycling emotion, You take our worst day and turn it into our greatest warship.

The ceremony will cap a week of events intended to let USSNY’s crew enjoy the flavors of the city as well as allowing ordinary citizens to walk  her decks. It’s an event you don’t want to miss, nothing compares. So please, for the week of September, 6th through the 12th 2009, visit the ship and put yourself in a New York State of mind

post Northrop Grumman awaits fate of military ship contracts

June 16th, 2008

Filed under: Uncategorized — admin @ 5:40 am

by Jaime Guillet

http://www.neworleanscitybusiness.com/

Northrop Grumman employees stand in front of the company’s newest ship, the LPD New York, which was built at Northrop’s Avondale facility. (Photo by Jaime Guillet)

Northrop Grumman employees stand in front of the company’s newest ship, the LPD New York, which was built at Northrop’s Avondale facility. (Photo by Jaime Guillet)

The Northrop Grumman Corp. shipbuilding sector has undergone major renovations, but company executives say they will have little effect on the 268-acre Avondale shipyard.

On Jan. 28, Northrop consolidated its two former shipbuilding sectors — Newport News, Va., and Ship Systems, which includes Avondale and Pascagoula, Miss., — into one division — Northrop Grumman Shipbuilding.

As the nation’s sole industrial designer, builder and fuel supplier of nuclear-powered aircraft carriers and one of two companies that designs and builds nuclear-powered submarines, Northrop’s shipbuilding presence in Louisiana is significant. Although headquartered in Los Angeles, Northrop’s shipbuilding activity in Louisiana accounts for nearly 5,500 jobs and a $168-million economic impact in 2007.

Northrop’s goal for the recent realignment was to find “better ways to deploy our people, capital assets and technology,” said C. Michael Petters, Northrop Grumman Shipbuilding president.

“(The realignment) is a critical part of our strategy of building ships in the future,” Petters said. “(It’s) four months into the experiment and we’ve made substantial progress.”

While Northrop has consistently talked about a need for more employees at its Avondale yard the past few years, Petters said he is comfortable with its current standing.

“All in all, we’re pretty well staffed in Avondale. We’re in pretty good shape,” Petters said.

The most significant event in 2007 for both yards was the christening of the amphibious transport dock ship USS New York, which is constructed with 7.5 tons of steel from the World Trade Center destroyed in the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, said Bill Glenn, a spokesman for the company’s Pascagoula facility.

Between the Louisiana and Mississippi shipyards, Northrop continues to work on 12 shipbuilding contracts comprising four classes of ships. The company recently delivered two of the eight security cutters it is building for the U.S. Coast Guard.

In March, Northrop beat out Chicago-based Boeing Co. for a $35 billion-plus contract to build 179 Air Force tankers, the bulk of which should be built in the Gulf Coast area.

“(The Air Force tanker) is a big win for us,” Petters said. “It also means more economic development for the Gulf Coast. It’s an even bigger success for this part of the region. We’ve very excited about this part of the country.”

Northrop Grumman still awaits Congress’ vote to fund the 10th and 11th Landing Platform Dock-class ships in the $601 billion defense bill for 2009. The company is building the last four DDG51 class destroyers remaining on a 28-ship contract and just received the contract to build one DDG 1000 Navy destroyer.

Petters said the company will deliver two LPD-class ships to the Navy in late 2008 and into 2009.•

post Crash site steel eyed for USS Somerset

June 1st, 2008

Filed under: News — admin @ 4:59 pm

Crash site steel eyed for ship

BY KECIA BAL
The Tribune-Democrat

Published: May 30, 2008 11:48 pm

SOMERSET As a Mississippi company nears construction on the USS Somerset – a Navy ship to be constructed in honor of the Flight 93 heroes – officials want to incorporate a piece of the crash site.One option is melting 25 tons of steel from a dragline at the crash site to be used in construction of the Somerset, an amphibious transport dock ship. A similar idea worked for the USS New York, built as a tribute to those who suffered on Sept. 11, 2001. Part of that ship was built using 21 tons of steel from the former World Trade Center towers.

“This has been in the works for a while,” Somerset County Commissioner John Vatavuk said. A contractor is to be on site Monday to transport the metal to a smelting plant in Newport News, Va., he said.

But a spokesman with Northrop Grumman, which built the New York and is building the USS Somerset and USS Arlington, could not confirm the news.

He said officials have been working to find a way to incorporate each site into the 684-foot-long vessels. Construction on the Somerset has not started.

Flight 93 Ambassador Dave Zwick said the dragline – a crane with a bucket attached that is used in coal mining – has been a part of the crash site from the beginning and is one of the scenes visitors remember. The machine, about a half-mile north of the crash site, was parked there a couple years before Sept. 11, 2001, and has been idle since.

Zwick helped propose the idea of using steel from the machine to county officials a few months ago.

“I thought it would be appropriate, with our mining heritage,” he said.

Zwick had read about the attempts to use artifacts from the other crash sites in those vessels.

“I thought, if they are making one for Somerset, they ought to have something from Somerset,” Zwick added.

In 2004, Navy Secretary Gordon England announced that USS Somerset would be the name of the ninth San Antonio-class amphibious transport dock ship.

post “Hero Ships” to air on Memorial Day, by History Channel International

May 13th, 2008

Filed under: Uncategorized — admin @ 12:40 pm

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

CONTACT: Lou Reda/610.258.2957

lou@louredaproductions.com

In honor of Memorial Day, History International premieres the series HERO SHIPS

On Monday, May 26

True accounts of bravery, sacrifice and glory told by the sailors who were

on the front lines, and on deck…

HERO SHIPS

A Lou Reda Production

NEW YORK, MAY 6, 2008 – They took the fight to the enemy, shelled foreign coasts long

into old age and sailed underneath the polar ice-caps, but even though these ships are arguably

the most prestigious vessels in American history, they would have been sent to the scrap heap

long ago if it hadn’t been for the men who served on them and refused to let go. HERO

SHIPS will premiere on Monday, May 26 at 8pm ET, on History International.

With high definition footage and gripping interviews, HERO SHIPS is a journey through time,

exploring some of the most magnificent ships in US Naval history. Each episode shows the

evolution of one ship and retraces the most dramatic moments from her history. In many cases,

the ships were forgotten by their country and destined for sale or destruction before veterans’

groups stepped in to save them. Now, these hero ships are moored in some of the nation’s

biggest cities, floating museums and gateways to a time when grey-skinned battlewagons

prowled our imaginations.

HERO SHIPS: USS Arizona (Monday, May 26 at 8pm ET) – In this inside look, underwater

photography beneath Peal Harbor reveals not only the damage sustained in her last battle but

also how much she has degraded over time. We now think of her only in death but in life she

was one of the most innovative warships of her kind, and one of the most iconic ships in

American history. The USS Arizona is a national cemetery as well as national monument, with

900 crew members buried within the vessel.

HERO SHIPS: USS Enterprise (Monday, May 26 at 9pm ET) – The original Enterprise,

CV-6, gained immortality as “The Fighting Lady” of World War II. But despite her glorious

history, she was sent to the scrap yard, only to be redeemed in the 1957 launch of CVN-65, the

world’s first nuclear-powered carrier. Today the USS Enterprise remains on the high seas and

in the front lines of America’s military engagements.

HERO SHIPS: LST’s (Monday, May 26 at 10pm ET) – “Landing Ship Tanks” weren’t

deemed noble enough to have names. They were not thought of as warships even though they

were always the first floating metal to touch beaches from North Africa to the Philippines. The

story of these ships exemplifies the collective saga of a design class that had absolutely no

military precedent before the first keel was laid in June of 1942.

**Starting June 1st, HERO SHIPS will air new episodes each Sunday at 11pm ET.

Specific airdates for the following episodes are TBD.

HERO SHIPS: USS Constitution – Also known as Old Ironsides, the USS Constitution holds

steady as one of the U.S. Navy’s most powerful accomplishments in craftsmanship and

endurance. It is one of the six original frigates authorized for construction by the Navy Act of

1794, and today still remains afloat, serving as a training facility for the Navy’s CPO.

(June 1)

HERO SHIPS: USS Nautilus – The name was passed along Navy surface ships from the War

of 1812 through the Mexican War, and then eventually given to submarines beginning in World

War I. During World War II, the name landed on a unique sub equipped with two six-inch

guns designed to combat destroyers and cruisers, yet big enough to be assigned to deliver

massive amounts of cargo to Marine raiders. From 1951 through 1979, the replacement USS

Nautilus completed numerous successful voyages, including sailing under the polar icecap.

(June 8)

HERO SHIPS: USS Hornet – One of the most heroic ships of World War II, CV-12 served as

the flight deck for the Doolittle Tokyo raid, and its predecessor ship, the CV-8, endured 16

months of non-stop combat action, coming within 40 miles of Japan, and setting incredible

wartime records. Some of those feats included: 10 of its pilots reached “Ace in One Day”

status, over 1,400 enemy planes destroyed, and a considerable amount of its Hellcat pilots

became aces. (June 15) HERO SHIPS: USS Texas – A technical and historical thumbnail of the US Navy from 1912

through 1945, the USS Texas fought in some of the most horrendous naval battles of the 20th

century, including D-Day Normandy, Iwo Jima and Okinawa. Today she’s been renovated and

set up as floating museum in LaPorte, TX, a glorious reminder of two great wars. (June 22)

HERO SHIPS: USS New Jersey – America’s most decorated surviving warship, the USS

New Jersey has fought in more battles than any other fighting ship in US naval history. From

WWII, to Korea and Vietnam, Lebanon and Syria, the USS New Jersey was on the front lines,

lending support in every major engagement. This episode of HERO SHIPS includes the

emotionally stirring first reunion in three decades of two shipmates who served together on the

USS New Jersey during Vietnam. (June 29)

HERO SHIPS: USS Yorktown – Two magnificent ships carried the same great name; the

original CV-5, was a martyred hero of the Second World War’s two pivotal battles, the Coral

Sea and Midway, sinking several Japanese carriers. CV-10, successor to CV-5, went on to

avenge the destroyed namesake through the remainder of the war.

HERO SHIPS: USS Laffey – The USS Laffey was in reality two great vessels with the same

name—the first, DD-459, fought to the death in the Naval Battle of Guadalcanal in November

1942. The second, DD-724, was at the center of World War II’s most intensely brutal

kamikaze attack, where it earned the nickname “The Ship that Would Not Die.” However, the

crew casualties were high: over 30 perished and another 70 were wounded.

HERO SHIPS: SS Jeremiah O’Brien – Not all hero ships were built for battle. The SS

Jeremiah O’Brien served as a beacon of hope as it was one of many liberty ships that kept the

supplies flowing. The ship miraculously survived the D-Day invasion, and is currently

harbored in San Francisco, and participates in Fleet Weeks and cruises across the world.

HERO SHIPS: USS New York – This episode reveals how the latest ship to be named “USS

New York” is assembled; an Amphibious Dock Ship, and one of the most technologically

advanced vessels in America’s arsenal, reinforced with steel from the World Trade Centers. Its

predecessor, the battleship New York, born in 1911, was present during the German High Seas

Fleet at Scapa Flo in 1918. Later modernized, it fought a two ocean war in World War II.

HERO SHIPS: USS Samuel B. Roberts – The first Samuel B. Roberts, DE-413, perished in

the greatest naval battle ever fought. In October 1944, as part of minimal force protecting jeep

carriers in Leyte Gulf, the vessel faced a tremendously superior Japanese fleet. Fighting to the

death, the DE-413 was able to fend off much of the Japanese force before sinking to the bottom

of the ocean. The name Samuel B. Roberts appeared two more times, including the FFG-58,

launched in 1984, participating in Desert Storm, and today is on-call for homeland security.

HERO SHIPS is produced by Lou Reda Productions for History. Executive Producer for

History is Michael Stiller. Executive Producers for Lou Reda Productions are Lou and Scott

Reda.

LOU REDA PRODUCTIONS is internationally recognized as one of the

nation’s outstanding documentary filmmakers, producing programs of the highest

quality for cable and network television. To learn more about Reda go to

www.redafilms.com

HISTORY CHANNEL INTERNATIONAL gives viewers a global perspective

with original programming that makes a world of difference.

www.historyinternational.com


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