The USS John F. Kennedy, the Navy’s last non-nuclear powered aircraft carrier, is at Brownsville, Texas, to begin a two-year dismantling by International Shipbreaking LLC.
The Kennedy (CVN 67) was towed 2,021 miles from the Philadelphia Naval Yard, arriving Feb. 2, International Shipbreaking president Chris Green said in a statement Feb. 17.
Based on the Navy’s Kitty Hawk class attack carriers, the Kennedy was the last of the class when it was laid down in 1964, the year after President John F. Kennedy’s assassination in Dallas, Texas.
“It's an honor to be given this extraordinary ship to dismantle and recycle, and our highly trained team will do so in a safe and respectful manner, appreciating the people who served our country onboard her,” said Green.
In service for 39 years, the 60,728-ton carrier was commissioned in 1968 and deployed during the 1970s. During the 1973 Yom Kippur War the Kennedy was in the eastern Mediterranean as the U.S. prepared for a possible Soviet intervention in the war between Israel, Egypt, and Syria.
The Kennedy launched early airstrikes against Iraq during Operation Desert Storm in 1991. Following the September 2001 attacks on the U.S., in 2002, Kennedy aircraft launched against al Qaeda and Taliban forces in Afghanistan.
In April 2005, the Navy decided to retire the carrier. It was decommissioned in 2007 and moved to Philadelphia in 2008. Efforts in New England to acquire the Kennedy as a museum ship came to naught.
“Having arrived safely in Brownsville, the carrier will go through an extensive dismantling and recycling process, which is expected to take approximately two years to complete,” according to a statement from International Shipbreaking. “Using innovative, safe, and sustainable recycling processes, International Shipbreaking aims to recycle 97% of materials. Once available, mementos from parts of the ship will be added to eBay so that those who served and other members of the public can own a part of history.”
