USS JFK

The United States Ship John F. Kennedy made one last port of call to South Boston over the weekend of March 3 and 4 before heading south to be decommissioned. On Sunday I trekked down, via MBTA, with my camera, to take a look. The line was literally a mile long and we stood in a bitter wind for an hour and a half before reaching the ship, but it was worth it. All told, I heard that 60,000 people visited the carrier over the weekend.
Statististics:
Builder: Newport News Shipbuilding
Fleet: Atlantic
Force: Battle Force
Overall Length: 1052 ft
Waterline Length: 990 ft
Extreme Beam: 252 ft
Waterline Beam: 130 ft
Maximum Navigational Draft: 36 ft
Draft Limit: 37 ft
Light Displacement: 60,728 tons
Full Displacement: 82655 tons
Dead Weight: 21927 tons
Hull Material: Steel hull, steel superstructure.
Number of Propellers: 4
Propulsion Type: Steam Turbines
Speed: 30+ knots (34.5 miles per hour)
Accommodations: Officers: 540, Enlisted: 4818
Armament: Sea Sparrow missiles, 3 Phalanx CIWS 20mm mounts
Combat Systems: SPS-43, SPS-48C, 3 Mk91 Fire Control, SLQ-29 EW, WLR- 1 ESM, WLR-11 ESM
Delivery Date: 08/31/1968
Award Date: 04/30/1964
Age (since delivery): 38.5 years
Keel Date: 10/22/1964
Commission Date: 09/07/1968
Launch Date: 05/27/1967
Age (since launch): 39.8 years
SOURCES: Naval Vessel Register, Federation of American Scientists

God bless the men and women who serve our country.