John F Kennedy (CVA 67) - Naval Cruise Book

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Ax. if 4 fp f. it 3: -TJ . .Q V, v Helms W E Vg .V Q -N 4. ' li dig. F 1 rg:- 6 'yum frm' c ii? Q' 'Ji .A- ,5 . fs., .lwl pcu is born the history of kennedy's ship's company began officially on december 12, 1967, in the office of vice admiral charles t. booth, then commander of naval air forces atlantic fleet, at the norfolk naval air station. as directed by the chief of naval operations admiral booth that day officially established the john f. kennedy precommissloning unit lpcul as a separate detached command. captain earl yates, prospective commanding officer, and a contingent of about 25 officers and men soon to be assigned to kennedy attended the ceremony. two days later capt. yates and his staff relocated in building P-4, an old, tvvo-story red brick structure on the naval operating base in norfolk . . . the home of pcu for the next GVQ months. on dec. 27, the first enlisted man reported aboard for duty and the pcu vvas under vvay. f ,er

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first time under way waterborn at last, shifting slightly in the water as if unsure of her footing in this new environment kennedy waited as a brood of tugs came to her aid, stabilizing her in the water and turning her bow toward her new berth at the 31 st street pier down the river. like so many tiny ants guiding a helpless queen the tugs nudged her at her stern and the sculpted mass of steel inched forward, her flight deck still covered with working huts and equipment. there was still more to be done much more. gaping holes in her sides awaited the placement 'Iii , ,L Li AL ' ml

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l-Cui' liiil 1QI 1111 1!7Ti ui! 1h11 Qlll 1311 iii! Iiii iii! Sm -lil Dui -iiiil ---1 Q, .A gg- . t 9 t U -u- .- ' r -1' K-. Q--Ag .n L, 536-fe .W-rf-1 ,, .Q H1 , 371- ,:g...,'. , .sei -,, 1- - ' W5 . g:,gg?,Qj ,. ,.... , S111 :lasting hiii :nail iq :iii :Illini 1111 airin- 31:11 ' - wsu .A- the tone of the pcu was quicky established at bldg. p-4 all hands were acutely aware of the plans for making kennedy's precommissioning a model of improved management and planning. they knew that kennedy was actually to be part ofa four-sided attempt to develop a management system good for the entire life of a ship. by jan. 3, administrative and personnel offices had been set up. educational services, disbursing and personnel were centralized to cut check-in time for enlisted personnel. through the spring and into the summer hundreds of new crewmen were processed through p-4 kennedy's ranks began to swell . . . from a handful to more than 2,000