Here's another article on the JAG investigation on board CVN-73. Just in case ya' did.nt know . The investigation was ordered by the CNO.
CNO orders investigation of GW fire
By Gidget Fuentes - Staff writer
Posted : Friday Jun 20, 2008 16:06:28 EDT
SAN DIEGO — With an assessment "nearly completed," of the damage done
to the aircraft carrier George Washington by its May 22 fire, Chief
of Naval Operations Adm. Gary Roughead has ordered an investigation
into what caused the blaze, Navy officials announced Thursday.
The Judge Advocate General's Manual investigation will be headed by
the U.S. Pacific Fleet in Hawaii, fleet officials said in a
statement. The Naval Safety Center in Norfolk, Va., is convening a
safety board and is conducting a separate safety investigation.
"The Navy is accumulating lessons learned on this incident to be
shared with the fleet," said the Pacific Fleet statement.
Meanwhile, the nuclear-powered aircraft carrier has settled into a
berth at Naval Air Station North Island, Calif., where it arrived May
27 for what has become a lengthy stay as repair crews and
investigators continue their work. The George Washington was
originally to conduct a turnover in June in Pearl Harbor with the
retiring, conventionally powered carrier Kitty Hawk, but the exchange
is now scheduled for San Diego in August.
The delay for the George Washington's arrival as the new forward-
deployed carrier in Japan doesn't appear to have further delayed the
Kitty Hawk's planned decommissioning in Bremerton, Wash., which
officials said would be done "on schedule."
Navy Secretary Donald Winter on Thursday toured the George Washington
and got briefs on the damage assessment, repairs and firefighting
efforts by the ship's crew. Sailors took four hours to put out the
fire, which had spread to multiple decks and spaces through
ventilation and cable trunks.
"I am impressed with the manner in which they fought this fire,"
Winter said in a statement. "They worked as a well-trained team to
contain the fire and to ensure the safety of all aboard, exemplifying
the fighting spirit of American sailors."
Winter also got a closer look at some of the damaged spaces and has
asked for more details and information on several areas,
including "how the ship's damage control team fought the fire, and
the extent to which ship modifications may have played a role with
how the fire spread," he said. "What we learn here can help us
improve our damage control training, assess our damage control
procedures and equipment, inform future ship alterations and prevent
future accidents of this type.
"Experience has shown that we must complete the removal of material
in the damaged areas before we can make a full assessment of the
necessary repairs and corrective actions," he added.
The Navy has not yet announced what specifically must be repaired or
how much it will cost to do the work, which is being done by
commercial and Navy shipyards.
"I am pleased with the methodological approach the team has taken in
developing a plan to repair the ship. They are making very good
progress," Winter said in the statement.
Last August, the George Washington finished an 11-month, $300 million
yard period at the Northrop Grumman Newport News shipyard in
Virginia. The work included upgrades and modifications as well as
repairs and maintenance to prepare the ship for its homeport shift
from Virginia to Japan.
