New Jersey (BB 62) - Naval Cruise Book

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M NEW JERSEY fires a broadside off the coast of Korea. service again. Museum societies prepared to accept and pre- serve the battleships. The Carter administration opposed New Jerseyis recommissioning. 4th Commissioning But in 1982, NEW JERSEY was commissioned by one of her greatest fans, President Ronald Reagan, who said the Navy gala reminded him of a film he acted in called Operation Hellcat. He said he had to confess that while he was still in love with his leading lady, Nancy, he was developing a great respect for the leading lady in these ceremonies. Sheis gray, she's had her face lifted. but she's still in the prime of her life, a gallant lady: The NEW JERSEY. It was the first time a President had commissioned a ship in over 40 years. Secretary of the Navy John Lehman was also there to sup- port the 514th of his 600 ship Navy. After much congressional deliberation, NEW JERSEY had been the first ofthe IOWAS to be recommissioned for a price of S326 million, on time and far under budget, in fact, for about the price of a new frigate. The battleship was inundated with requests to serve by over 4,000 volunteers. Only 1,550 men were chosen, 300 in crit- ical ratings: a far cry from the 2,500 men who served in World War II. The battleship was reconditioned with capabilities for car- rying 32 Tomahawk missiles: the most ad- vanced of naval missiles and four times the num- ber carried by any ship at that time. She also carried 16 Harpoon anti-surface missiles, four Vulcan-Phalanx close-in gatling-guni' weapon systems for de- fense against incoming aircraft or missiles, a modern electronic countermeasures sys- tem, a cruiser-style NEW JERSEY lies at anchor with the fleet at Ulithi. File Photo -EKMQW communication system, aviation facilities and operating sta- tions for SH-60B helicopters, updated air and surface radars, and conversion of the fuel plant to burn Navy distillate fuel. Beirut NEW JERSEY was on a three-month Shakedown cruise off Southern California when there were political flare-ups in Central America that demanded her attention. Then, the Beirut crisis began. She transited the Panama Ca- nal, having been designed to do so with a clearance of approx- imately two feet. The battleship remained on station with the Sixth Fleet for six more months in support of U. S.fMarines W Y In , g 5 mlfifll wr as , -f Y af., Mtv File Photo CAPT Peniston departs the ship after decommissioning in 1969. Modern Dreadnought i File Photo 5 V Y Y -l

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ADM IRAL l. HALSEX .. , 59 5-Q i f ' ,,Np5f ' 5 F , 11 L R 3:2 -F I CPR ' - 1 5 iiaifefib 5 3-4591 if fi Q ' 'T-iff f f f 'li ipl .. 1 W u. 1 x., 'bee- VOL. 2 PO. I3 U. S. S. -NEW JERSEY SEPTEMBER 3, ISM'-l LWEQKL iiiliml-Maisie! H.iiSEY'JFf- Admiral William F. Halsey is one of the few military leacers of this var who has become a legend in his own time. And toda the U.S.S. NEW Y JERSEY has the lucky prospect of b t f th t r fl ecoming a par o a au a o eg- end and history which lill surround the name of Halsey as long as Amer- ican naval traditions e remembered. - When the history of :Eg var against Japan is lritten, it wi l be in part the story of the achievements of Admiral Halsey,America's nfightinest Admiral since David Farragut of the , ,, . s ee - Civil war. The fa-ous Civil war AIIIRAL HALSI-Y h s long b n one of gre legit Ad-irq-L ordered' Damn the torpedoes imlte heroes of the VFW JERSPI. Reason: he is l and full speed. ahead ' It is hard to native-born-JERSEYNAN. He was born at Elizabeth. :' . N.j., and lived there for live years. The tate say 'blah of the -any Halsey 'clung' of New Jersey claims him as its own, although 'ill be re-e.bered. It -ight be The his legal residence is Cnlifornis. When the NEI . l ,. . JERSEY 'ns searching for n tradition to live up only good Jap 1. G dead Jap' It to, the state of New jersey proudly handed over .ight be one of half 5 hundrgd Qther Admirlsl wllulleybnlock. lstocz usd barrel ss the gutty remarks.he has made at high ftfie i 2fL-- -....--,-. moments of our recent naval history. Admiral Halsey has the priceless Or it light be some order he 'ill genius of being able to put into give on board the NEW IERSE! in the cold and chiselled vords the burning months ahead. , gsmotiona menvyf-fl in lar ----- tlnei-it ---RE'I'RICI'EDISSUE-Nottobelailedhole-Foruseonlyonship--- File The ship's newspaper Jerseyman welcomes ADM Bull Halsey. and second tour from March 1953 to November 19531 the ship was flagship for the Seventh Fleet. Duties in Korean waters included gun strikes along the coast of North Korea and gunfire support at the 38th parallel bombline. Targets included bunkers, bridges and even moving trains: a true test of 16-inch gun accuracy. In Korea, NEW JERSEY fired over 7,000 16-inch rounds. On May 21, 1951 the ship took its only wartime casual- ty. A Korean coastal battery opened fire when the battleship entered its range. A near-miss, one four-inch shell exploded aft of the ship fportj. The shrapnel killed one man and in- jured two others. Also, the ship's forward 16-inch gun turret took a direct hit but the turret crew suffered no casualties and the turret sustained little damage. NEW JERSEY maintained her reputation gained in World War II that she was a lucky', ship. Uponreturning tothe UnitedStatesanduntilthesummer of 1 957, N EWJ ERSEY. operatedlwith the Atlantic. Fleet out of her home port, Norfolk, Virg. Some of these operations in- cluded two midshipmen cruises to Europe, short reserve cruises, a five-month cruise with the Sixth Fleet in the Mediterranean and participation in NATO operations during the fall of 1956. In December 1956, NEW JERSEY reported to the New York Naval Shipyard for inactivation and on Aug. 21, 1957, she was decommissioned and placed in the inactive reserve fleet at Bayonne, N. J. She was moved to the Inactive Ship Mainte- nance Facility at the Philadelphia Naval Shipyard. On Nov. 5, 1957, the world's last active battleship, the WISCONSIN was also decommissioned. V1etn am Era But surprisingly, on August 1, 1967, the decision was made to recommission NEW JERSEY, in the best shape of the four battleships, once again for duty with the fleet. A debate had been spurred throughout the battleship's hiatus between proponents of rapidly advancing missile technologies and tried- and-true artillery, and also the age-old argument between naval and air bombardment. At the time, an average of one American aircraft per day was lost in Vietnam and an all-weathern sup- port capability was needed. The ship was outfitted inthe Philadelphia Naval Shipyard for a cost of 821.5 million in Navy operating and maintenance funds. Eight months later, on April 6, 1968, the recommission- ing ceremony marked the entrance into the fleet of the world's only active battleship. She left Philadelphia in May, transited the Panama Canal, and arrived on the West Coast in early June for refresher training. NEW JERSEY left her home port of Long Beach, Calif., and arrived on station off Vietnam Sept. 29. She conducted gunfire support missions for allied forces fighting in South Vietnam and shelled enemy coastal positions in North Vietnam before Lyndon Johnson's Nov. lst bombing halt. The effect on the Communists was enormous, physically as well as psycholo- gically. Her actions were lauded by ground troops. After deliv- ering almost 12 million pounds of high explosives onto Commu- nist targets in Vietnam, NEW JERSEY returned to Long Beach on May 5, 1969. Her new life was cut short 20 months after recommission- ing by political sentiments which attempted to limit the devel- oping war machine. Much to the dismay of many naval experts, Marines, soldiers and especially crew, the battleship was de- commissioned Dec. 17, 1969, marking what many thought would be the end of the battleships. The Commanding Officer, Captain Peniston, retired her with the words rest well, yet sleep lightlyg and hear the call, if again sounded, to provide fire- power for freedom. Throughout the '70's, NEW JERSEY and her sister IOWA's experienced several close calls, both for reactivation and for being struck from the Navy list. Feasibility studies de- termined the ships would be too difficult to activate on short notice during surges in the Vietnam situation. Some in power believe money was being wasted on ships that would never see ' .1 V. , 5 I if , ,,,+Qr,,',,,..,,:f.W1Jikq'.11':l:l'1'..Zw,1 jg 1 ' 1 , will J. , , .rwga W... 1- -' ,.fi,,'f1i,,,,.,,..,1,47'.flIJM:f.w4i,1rW'f:'fi,wwmfiwvii3'I- ' , ,, ', , :,g','i '1,1j.'w,',i ifffff,nlg.2u,'-. g,f1' iw i,,., ' . . , ,i.,wfi,l47fimw 2,MyWf.4v'wwwtlw0.fy.m1'-lmw-i14hw1'l1-f,- , Nw ,. 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in the Multi-National Defense Force. On three occasions, she fired her 16-inch guns in their defense. On February 8, 1984, she fired 288 rounds into the surrounding hills to effectively knock out Syrian anti-aircraft missile sites. The accuracy of the guns was questioned by some critics, but the mission was clearly accomplished. Toward the end, volunteers began relieving many of the crewmembers, but in May, 1984, eleven months after departure, NEW JERSEY returned home. NEW JERSEY proved herself during that deployment. Her presence in tandem with aircraft carrier groups was significant in that it couldnit be countered. Her rounds were not flown in by vulnerable pilots in ex- pensive jet aircraft, and a one-ton bullet could hardly be deterred from its target. Had the Syrians had the capability, conven- tional countermeasures against the ship would meet extreme resistance, and if not shot down, they would meet with armor over a foot thick in many places. It was gen- erally thought that an Exocet missile of the type which split the HMS SHEFFIELD during the Falklands War, would merely bounce off battleship armor, causing the ship to conduct Msweepersf' While this may seem far-fetched, it does make a significant point: short of a direct nuclear hit, a battle- ship is likely to sustain relatively significant damage and keep on operating. The history of battleships supports this. Battleship Battle Group NEW J ERSEY's next deployment was to be significant for another reason. It would be the first deployment of a battle- ship battle group since the Korean War. As centerpiece of the battle group, NEW JERSEY and her escorts operated from Hawaii to Thailand as The battleship battle group included anti-air and anti-sub- the only United States Naval presence in that area from May marine warfare capable cruisers, destroyers, frigates and support to October, 1986, relieving a portion of the much-strained carrier ships. It was not intended to replace an aircraft carrier group. commitment. However, in areas of lesser enemy air and submarine threat NEW JERSEY fires a Harpoon missile during tests.