The Fletcher class destroyers — 175 hulls built between 1942 and 1944 at Bath Iron Works, Bethlehem Steel (Quincy, San Francisco, and Staten Island), Federal Shipbuilding, Puget Sound Shipbuilding, Seattle-Tacoma Shipbuilding, Gulf Shipbuilding, and other wartime yards — were the backbone of the US Navy’s WWII and postwar destroyer force. Fletcher-class destroyers used General Electric steam turbines delivering 60,000 shaft horsepower with two Babcock & Wilcox boilers operating at 600 PSI / 850°F. This steam propulsion plant required asbestos insulation throughout the engineering spaces, and the Fletcher class is one of the most thoroughly documented destroyer classes in the asbestos litigation record.

Steam Turbine Engineering and Asbestos

Fletcher-class destroyers were equipped with two GE steam turbine plants in separate engine rooms, each served by its own fireroom containing B&W boilers. The engineering spaces required asbestos in multiple applications:

  • Boiler insulation in the two firerooms — asbestos block, sectional covering, and cement on B&W boiler casings, steam drums, and uptakes operating at 850°F
  • Main steam piping from firerooms to engine rooms carrying asbestos block and lagging covering on the 600 PSI steam runs
  • GE main propulsion turbine casings covered with asbestos block insulation in the engine rooms
  • Reduction gear enclosures with asbestos cloth and tape in fireproofing applications on the gearbox housings
  • Auxiliary steam systems serving ship’s hotel loads using asbestos-insulated pipe distribution throughout the ship

Class-Wide Asbestos Documentation

The Fletcher class is documented in the publicly filed asbestos litigation record through multiple independent sources covering the full 175-vessel class. Blueprint documentation addressing the class, asbestos profiles for the class’s propulsion and auxiliary systems, and shipboard equipment records from multiple named Fletcher-class hulls are present in the asbestos litigation record. The class-wide documentation established the exposure pathway for all Fletcher-class veterans, not just those aboard individually named vessels.

Prominent Fletcher-Class Hulls

Named Fletcher-class destroyers documented in public records include USS Fletcher (DD-445), USS Hopewell (DD-681), USS Bronson (DD-668), USS Pringle (DD-477), USS O’Bannon (DD-450), USS Nicholas (DD-449), USS Taylor (DD-468), USS Jenkins (DD-447), USS La Vallette (DD-448), USS Radford (DD-446), and more than 150 additional hulls. Many Fletcher-class destroyers were transferred to allied navies during the Cold War, serving in Greek, Turkish, Taiwanese, South Korean, and other navies under Foreign Military Sales arrangements.

Postwar Service and Modernization

Fletcher-class destroyers served through the Korean War and into the Vietnam era. Many hulls received FRAM I or FRAM II (Fleet Rehabilitation and Modernization) upgrades in the 1960s that partially updated their combat systems while retaining original steam propulsion plants. FRAM-modernized Fletchers continued serving with the original asbestos-insulated engineering plant through the 1970s.

VA Claims for Fletcher-Class Veterans

VA presumptive service connection under 38 CFR § 3.309(d) covers asbestos exposure aboard Navy destroyers. Veterans who served in engineering or other ratings aboard Fletcher-class destroyers before the vessels’ decommissioning or transfer and have since been diagnosed with mesothelioma, asbestosis, or asbestos-related lung cancer may qualify for VA disability benefits. DD-214 records identifying a Fletcher-class hull number (DD-445 through DD-804) as a duty station document the qualifying 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 Fletcher Class (DD)

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.