The Charles F. Adams class guided missile destroyers — designated DDG-2 through DDG-24 — were the Navy’s primary guided missile destroyer type from their entry into service in 1960 through the Cold War era. Built at Bath Iron Works, Puget Sound Bridge and Dry Dock, Todd Shipyards, and New York Shipbuilding Corporation, the Adams class used steam turbine propulsion plants identical in construction to the Forrest Sherman-class destroyers from which they were derived. Their engineering spaces contained extensive asbestos insulation consistent with Navy destroyer construction standards of the 1950s and 1960s.

Steam Propulsion and Asbestos Exposure

Adams-class DDGs used two General Electric steam turbine plants with four Babcock & Wilcox boilers, generating 70,000 shaft horsepower. The high-pressure, high-temperature steam plant required asbestos throughout the engineering spaces:

  • Boiler casings and fireroom insulation using asbestos block, sectional covering, and cement to insulate the B&W boilers and associated steam drums at operating temperatures exceeding 1,000°F
  • Main steam piping from boiler to turbine covered with asbestos block insulation and lagging cloth throughout the run from firerooms to engine rooms
  • Turbine casings and exhaust connections covered with asbestos block and sectional insulation on the GE turbine casings and steam inlet/exhaust connections
  • Auxiliary steam systems serving heating, cooking, and laundry loads throughout the ship using asbestos-insulated pipe runs through interior spaces

Guided Missile Systems and Interior Construction

Adams-class DDGs were fitted with Tartar missile systems, requiring additional below-deck electronics and magazine spaces. The electronics spaces, magazine areas, and crew berthing incorporated asbestos floor tile, overhead lagging, and bulkhead insulation consistent with Navy construction standards through the late 1960s. Electronics maintenance personnel who worked in the missile fire control spaces were present in spaces with asbestos in the surrounding construction.

Class Hull Roll

Adams-class DDGs included USS Charles F. Adams (DDG-2), USS John King (DDG-3), USS Lawrence (DDG-4), USS Claude V. Ricketts (DDG-5), USS Barney (DDG-6), USS Henry B. Wilson (DDG-7), USS Lynde McCormick (DDG-8), USS Towers (DDG-9), USS Sampson (DDG-10), USS Sellers (DDG-11), USS Robison (DDG-12), USS Hoel (DDG-13), USS Buchanan (DDG-14), USS Berkeley (DDG-15), USS Joseph Strauss (DDG-16), USS Conyngham (DDG-17), USS Semmes (DDG-18), USS Tattnall (DDG-19), USS Goldsborough (DDG-20), USS Cochrane (DDG-21), USS Benjamin Stoddert (DDG-22), USS Richard E. Byrd (DDG-23), and USS Waddell (DDG-24).

VA Claims for Adams-Class Veterans

VA presumptive service connection under 38 CFR § 3.309(d) covers asbestos exposure aboard Navy guided missile destroyers. Veterans who served in engineering or hull ratings aboard Adams-class DDGs before the vessels’ decommissioning and have since been diagnosed with mesothelioma, asbestosis, or asbestos-related lung cancer may qualify for VA disability benefits. DD-214 records identifying a DDG-2 through DDG-24 hull number establish the qualifying ship assignment.

Product & Manufacturer Reference

The asbestos-containing products documented on U.S. Navy vessels and at shipyards are catalogued by manufacturer on AsbestosIndex. These records cross-reference which companies supplied which materials and to which facilities.

Pipe Covering & Block Insulation Thermal insulation applied to steam lines, valves, and equipment in engine rooms and fire rooms Marine Products Insulation, gaskets, and packing products specified for naval and commercial marine applications Boilers & Steam Equipment Boiler manufacturers and insulation products — central to the fire room exposure pathway Gaskets & Packing Sheet and ring gaskets used throughout piping flanges, valve bonnets, and pump housings Electrical Products Wire insulation, switchgear arc chutes, and panel liners used throughout electrical spaces Full Product Index Search all 200+ manufacturers and 1,500+ documented asbestos products on AsbestosIndex™

Navy Ratings Most Exposed to Asbestos Aboard Charles F. Adams DDG

The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs and the public asbestos litigation record document that the following Navy ratings worked routinely in spaces where ACM was installed, maintained, ripped out, and replaced:

VA Presumptive Benefits — No Filing Deadline

The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs recognizes mesothelioma, asbestos-related lung cancer, asbestosis, and pleural disease as conditions presumed to be service-connected for Navy veterans with documented asbestos exposure under 38 CFR § 3.309(d). No statute of limitations applies to VA disability compensation claims.

Available benefits may include monthly disability compensation, Dependency & Indemnity Compensation (DIC) for surviving spouses, priority VA healthcare enrollment, and Special Monthly Compensation for severe cases. Parallel claims against the asbestos bankruptcy trust funds established by the manufacturers of these products do not reduce VA compensation.

How to file a VA disability claim: VA claims are filed directly with the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs — not with a law firm. Start at VA.gov › Hazardous Materials Exposure, call 1‑800‑827‑1000, or get free help filing from a Veterans Service Organization: DAV, VFW, or American Legion.

VA Claims Guide on This Site › Compare: VA vs. Civil Lawsuit

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.