Naval Aviation Depots (NADEPs) were the Navy’s depot-level aircraft maintenance and overhaul facilities, responsible for the most extensive overhaul, repair, and rework of Navy and Marine Corps aircraft and aircraft components. Major NADEPs operated at NAS Jacksonville (Florida), NAS Cherry Point (North Carolina), NAS North Island (California), NAS Alameda (California, until closure), and NAS Pensacola (Florida). Both Navy and Marine Corps military personnel and large civilian workforces performed depot-level maintenance at these facilities, working in environments with documented asbestos-containing materials in aircraft components and facility infrastructure.

Asbestos in Aircraft Components

Aircraft undergoing depot overhaul at NADEPs contained asbestos-containing materials in several component categories throughout the period of peak NADEP operations:

  • Aircraft brake assemblies on Navy tactical aircraft used asbestos friction material in the brake pucks and linings serviced during landing gear overhaul — releasing asbestos dust during brake removal, inspection, and replacement
  • Engine gaskets and packing in Navy turbofan and turbojet engines used asbestos-containing gaskets on high-temperature sections at the exhaust turbine and afterburner stages of aircraft engines
  • Cockpit thermal insulation in some Navy aircraft types incorporated asbestos-containing blankets and pads behind cockpit panels and in avionics bays, disturbed during depot-level avionics and systems overhaul
  • Aircraft firewall and heat shield materials incorporated asbestos cloth and board in firewall construction on engine nacelles, disturbed during engine change and overhaul operations

NADEP Facility Infrastructure

NADEP facilities — large industrial buildings with high-bay maintenance floors — contained asbestos in building construction and utility systems:

  • Structural steel fireproofing applied to the building steel in major NADEP hangars using spray-applied asbestos fireproofing in construction predating the mid-1970s
  • Steam heating and utility piping serving the large NADEP maintenance buildings used asbestos-insulated pipe throughout the facility distribution systems
  • Industrial equipment including autoclave systems, test stands, and process equipment used asbestos gaskets and packing in high-temperature applications

Military and Civilian Worker Exposure

NADEPs employed both active duty Navy and Marine Corps personnel in technical maintenance ratings and large civilian workforces under civil service. Aviation Structural Mechanics (AM/AME), Aviation Machinist’s Mates (AD), and Airframers performing depot-level brake, engine, and airframe work were exposed to asbestos in aircraft components. Civilian depot workers who performed the same tasks for decades as career civil servants accumulated long-term asbestos exposure in NADEP environments.

VA and Civilian Claims

VA presumptive service connection under 38 CFR § 3.309(d) covers asbestos exposure for Navy and Marine Corps veterans who served at NADEPs in qualifying ratings before the early 1980s. Civilian NADEP workers may have separate occupational disease claims available through civil service channels and, if diagnosed with mesothelioma, through asbestos litigation against aircraft and component manufacturers.