Belknap Class Guided Missile Cruiser (CG-26) — Asbestos in the Cold War's Talos-Armed Cruisers

The Belknap class guided missile cruisers — nine ships commissioned between 1964 and 1967, originally designated DLG-26 through DLG-34 and redesignated CG-26 through CG-34 in 1975 — were an improved version of the Leahy class carrying the Talos long-range surface-to-air missile for fleet air defense in addition to the ASROC anti-submarine rocket system. The Belknap class used four Babcock & Wilcox high-pressure boilers generating steam for two sets of turbines producing 85,000 shaft horsepower on two shafts. The ships served as carrier battle group escort cruisers throughout the Cold War, with USS Belknap (CG-26) suffering serious damage in a 1975 collision with USS John F. Kennedy (CV-67) off Sicily. The four-boiler steam propulsion plant throughout the Belknap class was insulated with asbestos-containing materials consistent with mid-1960s naval construction, with Boiler Tenders and Machinist’s Mates maintaining the asbestos-insulated steam plant through the class’s Cold War escort service.

Belknap Class Four-Boiler Steam Plant Asbestos

The Belknap class steam plant incorporated Cold War-era asbestos:

• Babcock & Wilcox boiler casing insulation — the four high-pressure boilers in Belknap class boiler rooms were insulated with asbestos block insulation on boiler casing exterior surfaces and asbestos pipe covering on boiler steam connections. Boiler Tenders maintaining the boilers during Cold War carrier battle group escort operations worked in proximity to the asbestos boiler casing insulation throughout each engineering watch rotation
• Main turbine insulation — Belknap class main turbines and main steam piping were insulated with asbestos block and pipe covering throughout the engineering spaces. Machinist’s Mates tending the turbines worked in the asbestos-insulated engineering spaces during propulsion plant watch standing

Talos Missile System and Weapons Space Asbestos

Belknap class Talos systems incorporated asbestos in weapons spaces:

• Talos missile magazine construction — the Talos missile magazines aboard Belknap class cruisers — storing the large long-range Talos missiles used for fleet air defense — were constructed within the ship’s interior using asbestos-containing construction materials consistent with the mid-1960s construction specifications. Gunner’s Mates working in Talos magazine and launcher spaces accumulated background asbestos exposure from the magazine space construction
• USS Belknap 1975 collision and fire damage — the November 1975 collision of USS Belknap (CG-26) with USS John F. Kennedy (CV-67) during night operations off Sicily resulted in a severe fire that destroyed much of the Belknap’s superstructure. The resulting fire and subsequent rebuilding at Philadelphia Naval Shipyard exposed both the original engineering crew during the casualty and shipyard workers during the post-fire repair to asbestos-containing materials in the fire-damaged vessel

VA Claims for Belknap 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. Boiler Tenders, Machinist’s Mates, and crew members who served aboard Belknap class guided missile cruisers 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.