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USS Oriskany CV-34

The USS Oriskany, named for the Revolutionary War's Battle of Oriskany, earned two Battle Stars for her service in the Korean War, five Battle Stars for the Vietnam War, as well as a Navy Unit Commendation. She was 904 feet long and could carry 100 aircraft with a complement of 2600 sailors. Her propulsion of eight boilers and four steam turbines allowed the "Mighty O" to reach 33 knots per hour.

Reporting To Battle Early In Her Career

Commissioned in 1950, Oriskany delivered Carrier Air Group 1 for shakedown in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, before carrying Carrier Air Group 4 to training. After those missions, she joined the 6th Fleet for operations around Italy, France, Greece, Turkey, and Tripoli, before returning to New York for an overhaul and a new flight deck, steering system, and bridge. Thus outfitted, the Mighty O joined the Pacific Fleet in conducting Air Group 102 operations while assisting the UN forces in Korea. She then partnered with the Fast Carrier Task Force 77 in bombing missions and surface gun strikes along the coast, shooting down two MiG jets and damaging another.

Her presence on the battlefront was responsible for the destruction of enemy supply and artillery facilities, but she returned home for a break in 1953. After rejoining 7th Fleet to provide air support for Marine amphibious assault exercises, she was ready for another overhaul in 1954. Her next deployment found her with the Fast Carrier Task, with whom she carried out normal operations for two years.

A Modernization

Oriskany underwent the SCB-125A modernization program in 1957, during which she was given an enclosed hurricane bow, a new angled flight deck, enlarged forward elevator and an aft deck edge elevator. Her hydraulic catapults were replaced with steam catapults and her wooden flight deck planking was replaced with new aluminum planking. Embarking Carrier Air Group 14, she again completed routine missions, and became the first aircraft carrier to receive the Naval Tactical Data System. With Carrier Air Group 16, the Mighty O sailed in 1963 for refresher training and qualifications, while also trialing the E-2 Hawkeye, a new early warning aircraft. Plus, she had the honor of extending orientation protocol to senior officers from eight allied nations.

Disaster Strikes

In 1965, the USS Oriskany launched over 12,000 combat sorties and delivered nearly 10,000 tons of ordnance into South Vietnam and continued operations flagship of Carrier Division 9 with Carrier Air Wing 16, until returning to the San Francisco Bay Naval Shipyard in 1968. During this period, she suffered a major tragedy unrelated to the war effort: A fire broke out on the starboard side of the ship's forward hangar bay; it killed 44 men as a result of blazing over five separate decks. It was caused by a magnesium parachute flare explosion in the forward flare locker of Hangar Bay 1, but not because of faulty design; it was due to carelessness. The flare should have been thrown into the water, but a sailor accidently threw it back into the weapons locker. This, of course, caused all flares in the storage locker to ignite. Luckily, crewmen were able to move heavy bombs which had been lying just feet from the flames, and wheel the closest aircraft further away. It took three hours to extinguish the inferno, but all five of the court-martialed crew members were acquitted. This prompted a change in flare design as well as an increase in crew supervision.

A Poignant End

Oriskany was decommissioned 1976, with plans to remain a mobilization asset, but was stricken from the Naval Vessel Register in 1989. She was stripped and her equipment was recycled or donated to navy ship museums. (However, her bell is on display in Oriskany, New York.) In 2006, the Navy Explosive Ordnance Disposal team sank her 24 miles south off the coast of Pensacola, Florida, making her the first warship to become an artificial reef. Approximately 500 total pounds of net explosive weight, placed on 22 sea connection pipes in the ship's machinery spaces, resulted in the USS Oriskany sinking 210 feet into the Gulf of Mexico-just 37 minutes after detonation. The Discovery Channel documentary, "Sinking of an Aircraft Carrier" recounted the process, and the Oriskany was also filmed for scenes in the movies "The Bridges at Toko-Ri", "What Dreams May Come", and mentioned in the novel "The Right Stuff". She had been home to Senator John McCain (R-AZ), who flew off her for his 23rd bombing mission in the Vietnam War in 1967, only to have his plane shot down. He became a Prisoner of War for the next six years. Senator McCain referred to the Mighty O as a "brave ship" and hopes to dive to the wreck for a visit some day.

Her own disaster aside, the USS Oriskany faced another fire danger when it raced to provide assistance to a sister ship, the USS Forrestal, who was under attack from its own onboard blaze. Sailors saw for themselves just how important it was to prevent fires from igniting and spreading, since they experienced the resulting death and destruction first-hand. All ships and their crews of this time did as much as possible to install fire prevention and fire fighting materials, and this probably included a good deal of asbestos along with standard insulation. Asbestos, with its ability to conform to very small and awkward spaces, and its recognition as a flame, heat, and electrical retardant, seemed ideal for the constantly high heat temperatures faced by battleships. However, if even a small amount of asbestos fibers escaped their sealants and entered the vessel's air circulation, they may have been inhaled by anyone on board. It would only be now that any physical problems would be visible, due to the long latency period of asbestos-caused diseases.

If you were exposed to asbestos while serving on the USS Oriskany CV-34, or have been diagnosed with mesothelioma, Asbestos.com offers a free packet with more information. Enter your contact information in the form in the right column and we'll send a copy immediately.

Aircraft Carriers Index

USS America USS Antietam CV 36 K USS Antietam CV 36 USS Badoeng Strait CVE 116 USS Bairoko CVE 115 USS Bairoko CVE 115 USS Belleau wood CVL 24 USS Bennington CV 20 USS Bon Homme Richard CVa USS Boxer CV USS Bunker CV USS Cabot CVL 28 USS Constellation CV USS Coral Sea CV USS Corregidor CVE 58 USS Sable ix USS San jacinto CVL USS Saratoga CV USS Saratoga CV3 USS Shangri La

USS Cowpens CVL 25 USS Enterprise CV 6 USS Enterprise CVN USS Essex CV 9 USS Forrestal CV USS Franklin CV 13 USS Hancock CV 19 USS Hornet CV 12 USS Hornet CV 8 USS Independence C1 USS Independence CVL 22 USS Intrepid CV 11 USS Kearsage CV 33 USS Kearsage CV USS Kitty Hawk USS Sicily CVe USS Sitkoh bay USS Tarawa CV USS Ticonderoga CV USS Valley forge CV

USS Lake Champlain CV 39 USS Langley CV 1 USS Langley CVL 27 USS Lexington CV 16 USS Lexington CV 2 USS Leyte CV 32 USS Midway CV USS Oriskany CV USS Phillipine Sea CV USS Point cruz CVE USS Princeton CV USS Princeton CVL USS Randolph CV USS Ranger CV USS Rendova USS Wasp CV 18 USS Wasp CV 7 USS Wolverine IX 64 USS Yorktown CV 10 USS Yorktown CV 5

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