Who or What Succeeds "Big John"?
The word out of the Navy Department is the nation's next nuclear-powered aircraft carrier, CVN-79, will be named in honor of John F. Kennedy.
This makes sense for several reasons: there already has been a JFK in the fleet -- the now-decommissioned CV-67, America's last non-nuclear carrier, known affectionately to its crew as "Big John"; Kennedy was a Navy man and a decorated WWII vet; President Kennedy's use of a naval blockade during the height of the Cuban missile crisis is the reason why carriers are built: to project American will and muscle.
Here's my question: what happens when it's time to name CVN-80?
Do we once again turn to a deceased American president -- FDR being the logical choice, as Franklin Roosevelt was a wartime president and already has had a carrier named in his honor (CV-42, the "Swanky Franky").
What about the two living presidents: Bush 43 and Bill Clinton?
And what of a host of American admirals -- Halsey, Spruance, Farragut and John Paul Jones -- who served the nation?
My advice: it's time for the Navy to return to its roots and start naming carriers after ships of the line. Think "Enterprise", "Wasp", "Lexington", "Saratoga", "Yorktown", "Ranger", "Hornet", "Essex", etc.
This won't be easy, as politics too often has polluted the naming of capital ships (seriously, two nuclear carriers named after Carl Vinson and John Stennis?). But it does harken back to a time when there was logic and consistency to naval namesakes -- states for battleships, cities for cruisers, sea creatures for submarines.
And it would speak well to the Navy upholding tradition. Which seems appropriate, for ships that will be showing the flag for the next half-century.
- Comment (12)
- · Quote
- · UnfollowFollow (2)
Comments :
May '10
Re: Who or What Succeeds "Big John"?
[snarky remark about the current Commander-in-Chief deleted]
Edited on May 29, 2011 at 8:01pmSep '10
Re: Who or What Succeeds "Big John"?
Agreed--and those names have a glorious history. For example, Yorktown, Enterprise and Hornet were the carriers whose pilots smashed the Japanese fleet at Midway.
May '10
Re: Who or What Succeeds "Big John"?
Does the USS Jimmy Carter (SSN-23) count as a "sea creature?" :)
I personally like naming carriers after Commander-In-Chiefs. After all, they don't call them 100,000 tons of diplomacy for nothing. I know this will go over like a lead ballon around here, but I think the next carrier in the Ford class should be named after Sen. John McCain. But it looks like CVN-80 might be the USS Barry M. Goldwater. Fine by me.
Mar '11
Re: Who or What Succeeds "Big John"?
I'm a Navy vet... I served on a carrier... and know this; many Navy vets I talk to are tired of seeing ships named after recent politicians. If you peruse some of the Navy vet blogs... Neptunus Lex, Cmdr Salamander, The Stupid Shall Be Punished, etc, you'll see a ton of exasperated comments when a new vessel is named after some recent political figure. The overwhelming response seems to be "go back to traditional names" for the ships. I would argue... and many others do as well... that our biggest carriers assets should be named after guys like Bull Halsey and Mark Mitscher. It's entirely appropriate that Chester Nimitz got a carrier named after him. A carrier named after Gerald Ford though? Really? And now we're going to extend the cult of Kennedy worship with yet another flatop named after him? At least Carter got a sub because he was in subs. If you're going to name anything after JFK, it should be one of the Littoral Combat Ships, which is about the closest thing the Navy has to a PT boat these days.
Edited on May 29, 2011 at 9:35pmSep '10
Re: Who or What Succeeds "Big John"?
Another Navy vet, and I agree it's a bad idea to name them after recent politicians. And can we just have some consistency here? The new LPD's are at least following the established tradition: city names. But the CVN's are all over the map: Reagan, Enterprise, Lincoln, George H. W. Bush (ack! RINO squish alert!), Carl Vinson?
And the LHD's are just as bad: most are named after famous battles (Makin Island, Boxer) but the first two are Wasp and Essex - recycled carrier names.
Dec '10
Re: Who or What Succeeds "Big John"?
Douglas - our biggest carriers assets should be named after guys like Bull Halsey and Mark Mitscher. It's entirely appropriate that Chester Nimitz got a carrier named after him. A carrier named after Gerald Ford though? Really?
What about the USS Ronald Reagan? If Reagan had lost the election in 1980, a second term of jimmy Carter might have been fatal to the US Military's capability to wage any kind of war - Desert Storm probably would have not been possible. Reagan was a relentless champion of the military. He not only restored the countries' pride and faith in the military he restored the pride and morale of the military itself. His vision and foresight built the war machine that astonished the world in Iraq during Desert Storm. The U.S., our military and the world owe an enormous debt to Ronald Reagan.
May '10
Re: Who or What Succeeds "Big John"?
This suggestion is entirely tongue-in-cheek: how about the USS Ron Paul? The look on his face would be rib-cracking funny. A serious question, though: would the USS Monitor (in honor to the Civil War ironside) be appropriate?
May '10
Re: Who or What Succeeds "Big John"?
I am biased because of my home town, so I vote for USS Lexington.
Not only does it have national historical significance, but Naval historical significance.
When I was in HS, I worked at the public library. hanging above the entrance was the tattered and singed American flag that had flown on the USS Lexington at the Battle of The Coral Sea....
Edited on May 30, 2011 at 5:53amDec '10
Re: Who or What Succeeds "Big John"?
Look on the bright side, it wasn't named after his younger brother Ted Kenndey. That decision might have led to all sorts of nicknames for the carrier:
USS Ted Kennedy AKA "USS Chappaquiddick"
USS Ted Kennedy AKA "USS Love Boat"
Jun '10
Re: Who or What Succeeds "Big John"?
USS Bill Clinton AKA "USS Serial Rapist".
May '11
Re: Who or What Succeeds "Big John"?
HRKMS Hope
May '11
Re: Who or What Succeeds "Big John"?
Oh, not Halsey please! I would prefer Rear Admiral Robert Carney, who told Halsey at Leyte Gulf, "Stop it! What the hell's the matter with you? Pull yourself together." Excellent advice.