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Anchor contributor Larry Crehore reports on AllVoices.com on the historic final deployment of the nuclear powered U.S.S. Enterprise, the oldest and longest carrier in the U.S. fleet, which has been involved in several wars, the Cuban missile crisis, John Glenn's historic earth orbit mission, and 21 previous deployments in its 50 year history. It was also featured in the film “Top Gun.” Designed to last 25 years, its life was extended with a major overhaul in 1979, but maintenance of the one-of-a-kind vessel can be tricky and expensive, since replacement parts often must be fabricated from scratch.
This final seven month tour of the Enterprise Carrier Strike Group will support maritime and theater security operations in the U.S. 5th and 6th Fleet areas of responsibility in the Middle East to deal with piracy threats and possible conflict with Iran.The final deployment will be followed by a Dec.1st deactivation ceremony at the Norfolk Naval Station to which President Obama has been invited. She will then be towed to the nearby Newport News shipyard where she was built, and after removal of the nuclear fuel, will be taken to Washington State in 2015 to be scrapped. Read the full article.
