Allen M. Sumner Class Destroyer (DD-692) — Asbestos in WWII and Korean War Navy Destroyers

The Allen M. Sumner class destroyers — 58 vessels commissioned between 1944 and 1945 (DD-692 through DD-741) — were wartime improvements of the Fletcher class design, incorporating twin centerline 5-inch/38 caliber gun mounts providing significantly enhanced firepower over the Fletcher class. Built at Federal Shipbuilding in Kearny, New Jersey, Bath Iron Works, and other yards, the Sumner class entered service in the Pacific during the final campaigns of WWII, participating in operations at Okinawa, the Philippines, and the final strikes against Japan. Following WWII, Sumner class destroyers formed a major component of the postwar destroyer force and served extensively in the Korean War, with Sumner class vessels providing gunfire support for UN ground forces on the Korean peninsula throughout the conflict. Many Sumner class vessels were later converted to fast destroyer escort (DDR) or radar picket (DDE) configuration. The class used the same General Electric or Westinghouse steam turbine propulsion as the Fletcher class, with high-pressure steam from Babcock & Wilcox boilers creating significant asbestos exposure through the boiler room and turbine room insulation systems.

Steam Plant Engineering and Asbestos

Allen M. Sumner class steam plants created extensive asbestos exposure:

• Babcock & Wilcox high-pressure boilers — Sumner class destroyers used two Babcock & Wilcox high-pressure boilers with asbestos block insulation on boiler casings and asbestos pipe covering on the steam main lines connecting the boiler rooms to the turbine rooms. Boiler Tender ratings maintaining these boilers in the confined boiler rooms of these 2,200-ton destroyers accumulated asbestos exposure from the installed boiler insulation and from disturbed insulation during boiler lagging repair and inspection operations
• General Electric or Westinghouse steam turbines — the twin General Electric or Westinghouse geared steam turbines driving the twin screws of Sumner class destroyers were surrounded by steam distribution piping with asbestos pipe covering and asbestos gasket materials in the steam line flange connections throughout the turbine rooms
• Auxiliary steam systems — the auxiliary steam systems serving ship evaporators, galley steam equipment, and steam-powered auxiliary machinery used asbestos pipe insulation throughout the auxiliary steam distribution systems in the engineering and accommodation spaces

WWII Pacific and Korean War Service

Sumner class destroyers performed major WWII and Korean War missions:

• Okinawa campaign operations — Sumner class destroyers served as radar pickets at Okinawa during the massive kamikaze campaign of spring 1945, with engineering ratings maintaining the high-pressure steam plants throughout the most intense kamikaze attacks of the Pacific War
• Korean War gunfire support — Sumner class destroyers provided close naval gunfire support to UN ground forces throughout the Korean War, with engineering ratings maintaining the steam plants through sustained Korean combat deployments

VA Claims for Allen M. Sumner Class Veterans

VA evaluates asbestos-related disability claims on a case-by-case basis. Veterans generally need evidence of in-service asbestos exposure, a current asbestos-related diagnosis, and a medical link between them. Engineering ratings who served aboard Allen M. Sumner class destroyers and have since been diagnosed with mesothelioma, asbestosis, or asbestos-related lung cancer may qualify for VA disability benefits.

Source notes: equipment-manifest entries (where shown) are sourced from public-record BUSHIPS (Bureau of Ships) documentation, NARA archives, and the public asbestos litigation record. Manufacturer attributions link to documented asbestos-product histories on AsbestosIndex.com where available. Nothing on this page constitutes medical or legal advice.