An Educational Venue
for former U.S.S. Intrepid (CV, CVA, CVS-11) Crewmembers
Chapter IX
– – INTREPID (CVS/CVA-11)-1965-1974 –
- September 1965: Intrepid, was in her final Fleet Rehabilitation and Modernization (FRAM) job performed by the New York Naval Shipyard, Brooklyn, NY, which was slated to close after more than a century and a half of service to the nation.
- With her work approximately 75% completed, she eased down the East River to moor at the Naval Supply Depot at Bayonne, NJ, for the completion of her multi-million dollar overhaul. After builder’s sea trials and fitting out at Norfolk she sailed to Guantanamo on shakedown.
Mid-1966 found Intrepid with the Pacific Fleet off Vietnam. Nine A-4 Skyhawks and six A-1 Skyraiders, loaded with bombs and rockets, were catapulted in seven minutes, with only a 28-second interval between launches. A few days later planes were launched at 26-second intervals. After seven months of service with the 7th Fleet off Vietnam, Intrepid returned to Norfolk having earned her Commanding Officer, Captain John W. Fair, the Legion of Merit for combat operations in Southeast Asia.
Intrepid operating as an auxiliary attack carrier off Vietnam, in 1966
- October 9, 1966: Ltjg William T. Patton of VA-176 from the Intrepid, flying a propeller driven A-1H Skyraider, shot down one MiG-17. For his action, Ltjg Patton was awarded the Silver Star.
In June 1967, Intrepid returned to the Western Pacific by way of the Suez Canal just prior to its closing during the Israeli-Arab crisis. There she began another tour with the 7th Fleet.
- In 1968, she won the Marjorie Sterrett Battleship Fund Award for the Atlantic Fleet.
- In 1969, Intrepid was home ported at Quonset Point, Rhode Island, relieving the carrier Yorktown as the flagship for Commander Carrier Division 16. In the fall, the ship was run aground by Captain Horus E. Moore, but was freed within two hours.
Intrepid operating in the Mediterranean in the 1970s.
From April–October 1971, Intrepid took part in NATO exercises, and made calls in the North Atlantic and Mediterranean ports of Lisbon, Plymouth, Kiel, Naples, Cannes, Barcelona, Hamburg, Copenhagen, Greenock, Rosyth, Portsmouth, and Bergen.
During this cruise, submarine detection operations were conducted in the Baltic and at the edge of the Barents Sea above the Arctic Circle, under close scrutiny of Soviet air and naval forces. She subsequently returned to her homeport to be refitted and then, beginning in July 1972, Intrepid participated once again in NATO exercises, visiting Copenhagen, Rotterdam, Bergen, Brussels, Portsmouth and Gourock. Once again Intrepid found herself in the Barents and made round the clock flight operations as she was once again above the Arctic Circle.
She cut her North Atlantic cruise short, returned to Quonset point for a mini-overhaul and was designated, once again, as CV-11 and made her final cruise in the Mediterranean, stopping twice in Barcelona and Malaga Spain; Lisbon, Portugal; Nice, France; Naples, Italy; Palma, Majorca; and Piraeus, Greece once. Due to fuel limitations Intrepid spent as much time in port as she did underway.
- March 15, 1974: Intrepid was de-commissioned for the final time.
- In 1976, Intrepid was moored at Philadelphia Naval Shipyard in Philadelphia, PA and hosted exhibits as part of the United States Bicentennial celebrations.
- Plans originally called for Intrepid to be scrapped after decommissioning, but a campaign led by real estate developer Zachary Fisher and the Intrepid Museum Foundation saved the carrier, and established it as a museum ship.
- In August 1982, the ship opened in New York City as the Intrepid Sea-Air-Space Museum. Four years later, Intrepid was officially designated as a National Historic Landmark.
- Over the years, Intrepid has, and still hosts many special events including wrestling events, press conferences, parties and the FBI operations center after the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks.
2006–2008 renovation
Throughout these several years, the Intrepid museum operated a fund it’s restoration, raising over $60 million to refit Intrepid, to improve its exhibits for visitors, and improve Pier 86.
USS Intrepid docked at Pier 86 on the Hudson River in NY
In early July 2006, it was announced that Intrepid would undergo renovations and repairs, along with Pier 86 itself. It closed on 1 October 2006, in preparation for its towing to Bayonne, New Jersey for repairs, and later Staten Island, New York, for renovation and temporary docking.
On 6 November 2006, an attempt to remove the aircraft carrier from the pier for restoration was temporarily put on hold by the Coast Guard. Despite the use of several tugs with a combined 30,000 hp (22,000 kW), officials said the ship was stuck in 24 years worth of accumulated silt and would not move.
On 11 November 2006, the United States Navy announced that it would spend $3 million to dredge the mud and silt from under Intrepid. The effort was led by the United States Navy Supervisor of Salvage and Diving with assistance from the United States Army Corps of Engineers, United States Coast Guard, and contractors. The teams operated for three weeks to clear the site of mud and silt.
On 5 December 2006, after the removal of 39,000 cu yd (30,000 m3) of muck from under the ship and around its four giant screws, Intrepid was successfully removed from its pier and was towed to Bayonne.
Intrepid made a D-Day “landing” on Staten Island, 6 June 2007, after being towed from a slip at Bayonne Dry Dock & Repair Corp.
While in Staten Island, Intrepid underwent the next phase of her refurbishment, and received an $8 million interior renovation. Never-before-seen areas of the ship including the forecastle (fo’c’sle, commonly known as the anchor chain room), general berthing quarters and the ship’s machine shop were opened to the public for the first time. The hangar deck now features a new layout and design including new interactive exhibits. Total cost of the renovation was $120 million — $55 million for the ship and $65 million for Pier 86.
The carrier was towed back into place on the Hudson River on 2 October 2008 and reopened to the public on 8 November.
The Intrepid with the USS Growler (SSG-577) lower left during Fleet Week 2010
The story of the Intrepid‘s move was featured on the History Channel’s Mega Movers’s program. The episode was titled “Intrepid: On the Move” and premiered 5 July 2007.
The ship has been featured in blockbuster films, including Aftershock: Earthquake in New York, the 2004 film National Treasure and the 2007 film I Am Legend, as well as Bordello: House of the Rising Sun.
The ship can be seen briefly in a shot of New York in the last few seconds of the series finale of The Suite Life on Deck, next to the SS Tipton being dismantled.
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Ref: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/USS_Intrepid_(1798)
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This Educational Venue is for former Intrepid Crewmembers
who served …’with pride and dedication’
A Former USS Intrepid (CV-11) Crew Member Blog - Introduction 