If you served or worked at Naval Air Station Jacksonville and have just been diagnosed with mesothelioma, asbestosis, or lung cancer, understand this: what you are dealing with has a direct cause. Asbestos was built into nearly every structure on this installation for decades — hangars, barracks, boiler plants, steam tunnels — and the disease you are facing now is the result of fiber inhalation that occurred 20 to 50 years ago. You have legal rights and VA benefits available to you, and you can pursue both at the same time.

The Navy commissioned NAS Jacksonville in October 1942. Located along the St. Johns River in Duval County, Florida, the installation has operated continuously for more than eight decades as a major naval aviation training and maintenance center.

Primary operational functions:

  • Anti-submarine warfare operations
  • Fleet readiness and aircraft maintenance
  • Pilot training and aviation readiness
  • Home to Fleet Readiness Center Southeast (FRCSE), one of the Navy’s largest aviation depot maintenance facilities
  • Continuous operations through World War II, the Korean War, the Cold War, Vietnam, and post-9/11 deployments

The base employs thousands of active-duty sailors, Marines, and civilian DoD workers at any given time. Personnel stationed at NAS Jacksonville and at comparable installations — Naval Station Norfolk, Naval Base San Diego, Pearl Harbor, Naval Base Kitsap, and Naval Station Charleston — have reported similar asbestos exposure patterns across Navy shore facilities nationwide.

How Asbestos Got Into NAS Jacksonville

Why the Military Specified Asbestos

From the 1930s through the late 1970s, the military built asbestos into shore installations by design. Military engineers and civilian contractors selected asbestos-containing materials for specific operational reasons:

  • Fire resistance — hangars housing aircraft and fuel systems required it
  • Heat insulation — boiler plants and steam distribution systems required it
  • Acoustic dampening — administrative and berthing spaces used it
  • Cost — asbestos was cheap and available under wartime and peacetime procurement contracts

Federal procurement records and published military construction histories document that virtually every facility type on a naval air station built before 1980 contained ACMs. The Navy’s reliance on asbestos-containing materials created widespread occupational exposure for sailors, Marines, and civilian trades workers throughout the installation’s operational history.

Facilities at NAS Jacksonville With Documented Asbestos Use

Aircraft Hangars and Maintenance Facilities

  • Spray-on asbestos fireproofing applied to structural steel — including Monokote products manufactured by Combustion Engineering — allegedly creating friable exposure hazards during aircraft maintenance operations
  • Steam heating systems insulated with Kaylo and Thermobestos block insulation from Johns-Manville
  • Transite board partitions and soffits manufactured by Eagle-Picher and W.R. Grace
  • World War II-era and postwar hangar structures were reportedly built with these materials throughout
  • Aviation Machinist’s Mates and aircraft mechanics working overhead in hangars allegedly received direct fiber exposure from deteriorating Monokote fireproofing

Boiler Plants and Central Heating Systems

  • Block insulation containing chrysotile and amosite asbestos from Armstrong World Industries and Georgia-Pacific
  • Pipe lagging and boiler packing incorporating Unibestos products from W.R. Grace
  • Valve insulation and fitting covers supplied by Garlock Sealing Technologies
  • Crane Co. boiler components with integral asbestos insulation, reportedly shedding friable fibers during routine maintenance
  • Boilermakers and facilities maintenance personnel performed direct maintenance on these systems

Steam Tunnels

  • Pipe insulation including Aircell from Owens Corning, Thermobestos from Johns-Manville, and Superex from Celotex
  • Steam tunnels run beneath large naval installations and concentrate asbestos fiber release in enclosed spaces with limited ventilation
  • Maintenance workers entering tunnels to service pipe systems allegedly received the highest exposures on this installation
  • Pipefitters and HVAC mechanics working in steam tunnel systems faced repeated, high-intensity exposures

Barracks and Base Housing

  • Vinyl asbestos floor tiles (VAT) manufactured by Armstrong World Industries and Georgia-Pacific
  • Acoustic ceiling tiles from multiple manufacturers including Gold Bond products
  • Joint compound and drywall finishing materials incorporating asbestos
  • Spray-on fireproofing in overhead spaces supplied by Combustion Engineering
  • All reportedly installed before the late-1970s phase-out
  • Active-duty personnel and their families living in base housing received chronic low-level exposure from these materials

Administrative Buildings and Base Schools

  • Floor and ceiling systems with asbestos tiles from Pabco and Armstrong World Industries
  • Wall insulation in older structures from Johns-Manville and Owens Corning
  • Transite board partitions and soffits from Eagle-Picher and Georgia-Pacific
  • Office workers and administrative personnel spent decades in environments with deteriorating ACMs

Fleet Readiness Center Southeast (FRCSE) Facilities

  • Machine shops and pipe shops with exposed pipe insulation
  • Aviation maintenance work centers with Monokote spray-on fireproofing
  • Boiler rooms equipped with Johns-Manville and Armstrong block insulation
  • Engine test cells with Combustion Engineering fireproofing, allegedly releasing fibers during aircraft maintenance and engine testing
  • FRCSE workers performing depot-level maintenance directly contacted asbestos insulation during routine servicing

Who Was Exposed at NAS Jacksonville

Active-Duty Military Personnel

Navy ratings at elevated risk:

  • Aviation Machinist’s Mates (AMM) — maintained aircraft and engines in hangars with Monokote fireproofing and Kaylo insulation overhead
  • Structural Mechanics — repaired hangar structures and handled transite board components directly
  • Ordnancemen — stationed in ammunition storage areas with asbestos-insulated heating systems
  • Boatswain’s Mates performing maintenance — serviced piping systems containing Thermobestos and Aircell insulation
  • Electronics Technicians — worked in mechanically ventilated spaces with spray-on fireproofing
  • Damage Controlmen — responded to facility damage and repaired ACM-containing systems

Marine Corps occupations at elevated risk:

  • Aircraft Mechanics — maintained helicopters and fixed-wing aircraft in hangars with spray-on fireproofing and insulated piping
  • Heavy Equipment Operators assigned to facilities maintenance — disturbed transite partitions and ACMs during repair work
  • Facilities Maintenance Personnel — directly handled VAT tiles, ceiling tiles, and pipe insulation
  • Supply and Logistics Specialists in base support units — worked in warehouses and storage areas containing ACMs

Sailors and Marines who lived in on-base barracks built before the asbestos phase-out were reportedly exposed to VAT floor tiles, acoustic ceiling tiles, and pipe and heating system insulation manufactured by Armstrong, Georgia-Pacific, and Johns-Manville in their dormitories.

Civilian DoD Employees and Defense Contractors

Skilled trades workers on base carried some of the heaviest exposures:

  • Pipefitters — performed maintenance on steam systems and boiler plants containing Thermobestos, Kaylo, and Unibestos; many worked under union contracts
  • Plumbers — installed and repaired water and heating lines with asbestos pipe lagging and fitting insulation from Garlock and Crane Co.
  • Boilermakers — maintained and repaired boiler systems insulated with Armstrong and Georgia-Pacific products
  • Insulators — applied and removed pipe insulation from Johns-Manville, Owens Corning, Celotex, and W.R. Grace; many worked under Heat and Frost Insulators collective bargaining agreements
  • Electricians — worked in mechanically ventilated spaces with Monokote and other spray-on fireproofing products
  • HVAC Mechanics — maintained heating and cooling systems with asbestos-containing ductwork insulation
  • Construction and Renovation Crews — disturbed Johns-Manville, Eagle-Picher, and Georgia-Pacific materials during facility upgrades from the 1960s through the 1990s
  • Demolition Workers — removed pre-1980 transite board, VAT, and pipe insulation during facility decommissioning

Civilian contractors and DoD employees who disturbed asbestos insulation, packing, and lagging as routine work allegedly experienced the highest exposures to friable ACMs on base. These occupational exposure histories support both VA disability claims and civil litigation.

When Peak Exposure Occurred

Initial Base Construction (1940–1945) World War II facilities were reportedly built under wartime contracts specifying Johns-Manville, Combustion Engineering, and Armstrong products. Spray-on fireproofing and block insulation were standard. No meaningful occupational safety controls existed, and workers had no knowledge of the health consequences.

Korean War and Cold War Expansion (1950–1965) Additional structures were added using Kaylo, Thermobestos, Monokote, and Aircell. Civilian contractors continued installing asbestos in new construction and renovations. Asbestos dangers remained largely unacknowledged during this period.

Vietnam War Era (1960–1975) Major facility upgrades incorporated Superex, Unibestos, Thermobestos, and VAT products. New barracks, administrative buildings, and maintenance facilities were allegedly built with asbestos components throughout. This period represents the peak of hangar maintenance exposures from Monokote fireproofing overhead.

Secondary Exposure Era (1975–1990s) Renovation and demolition of aging facilities disturbed intact legacy ACMs from Johns-Manville, Celotex, Combustion Engineering, and Georgia-Pacific. EPA NESHAP asbestos notification requirements applied to demolition and renovation of pre-1980 federal structures; abatement records from this period are documented in public EPA files. Workers who assumed they had missed the asbestos era still received exposure through disturbance of legacy materials during abatement.

Veterans and civilian workers who served or worked at NAS Jacksonville during the 1950s, 1960s, and 1970s face the highest probability of asbestos-related disease diagnosis today. This historical exposure window is central to establishing service connection in VA claims and occupational causation in civil litigation.

Why Diagnoses Are Still Happening Now

Asbestos-related diseases develop 20 to 50 years after initial fiber inhalation. A veteran exposed at NAS Jacksonville in 1965 may not receive a mesothelioma diagnosis until 2015 or later. The disease connects directly to base service or employment regardless of the decades that separate exposure from diagnosis. This latency is precisely why the VA presumptive benefit framework under 38 CFR § 3.309(d) matters: service connection does not require proving causation, only establishing that in-service exposure occurred.

Mesothelioma

Mesothelioma is a cancer of the mesothelial lining of the lungs (pleural), abdomen (peritoneal), or heart (pericardial). Asbestos exposure is the only well-established cause. Veterans diagnosed with mesothelioma qualify for VA disability compensation under the presumptive benefit framework without bearing a causation burden.

Symptoms:

  • Chest pain and persistent cough
  • Shortness of breath and pleural effusions
  • Abdominal swelling and fluid accumulation
  • Fatigue and unexplained weight loss
  • Symptoms frequently do not appear until disease has advanced to later stages

Prognosis: Median survival after diagnosis ranges from 12 to 21 months. Multimodal treatment combining surgery, chemotherapy, and immunotherapy extends survival in select cases. The aggressive progression of this disease makes prompt VA claim filing and legal action critical — not optional.

Asbestosis

Asbestosis is a chronic, progressive scarring of lung tissue caused by long-term asbestos fiber inhalation. It is not cancer, but it is permanently disabling and often fatal in advanced stages.

Symptoms:

  • Progressive shortness of breath
  • Persistent dry cough
  • Chest tightness
  • Clubbing of fingers in advanced disease
  • Reduced exercise tolerance and oxygen dependence in severe cases

Asbestosis qualifies for VA disability compensation. Civilian workers may pursue claims through the Longshore and Harbor Workers’ Compensation Act (LHWCA, 33 U.S.C. §

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