The Gearing class (DD-710 and later hull numbers) was the largest destroyer class in US Navy history — 98 ships completed in 1944–1946, built at Federal Shipbuilding, Consolidated Steel, Bath Iron Works, Bethlehem Steel, and Todd Shipyards. Gearing-class destroyers served continuously from World War II through the 1980s, with many ships undergoing FRAM (Fleet Rehabilitation and Modernization) upgrades in the early 1960s that extended their service lives. The class’s steam propulsion plants remained in active service for four decades after commissioning, creating sustained exposure to asbestos insulation in boiler rooms and engine rooms throughout the Cold War era.

Steam Propulsion and Asbestos Systems

Gearing-class destroyers were propelled by two sets of geared steam turbines driving two shafts, with steam generated by two Babcock & Wilcox or Foster Wheeler boilers operating at approximately 600 psi. This high-pressure steam plant required extensive asbestos insulation throughout the engineering spaces:

  • Boiler casings and drums were covered with asbestos block insulation typically six inches thick
  • Main steam lines from boilers to turbines were wrapped with asbestos pipe covering and lagged with asbestos cloth
  • Auxiliary steam systems serving the ship’s service turbine generators, feed pumps, and hotel loads used the same asbestos-insulated pipe throughout
  • Turbine casings and reduction gearing housings had asbestos expansion joint packing and blanket insulation
  • Valve and flange connections throughout the steam plant used asbestos spiral-wound gaskets and valve packing

FRAM Modernization and Asbestos Disturbance

The FRAM I and FRAM II programs upgraded Gearing-class destroyers in the early 1960s, adding anti-submarine warfare equipment and modernizing superstructure. Construction workers and ship’s crew present during FRAM work at naval shipyards were exposed to asbestos disturbance when contractors cut through or disturbed existing asbestos insulation to install new systems — creating the peak exposure scenario documented throughout shipyard and ship repair asbestos litigation.

Engineering Ratings and Asbestos Exposure

Boiler Technicians (BT) and Machinist’s Mates (MM) who served in Gearing-class engineering spaces operated and maintained steam plants surrounded by asbestos insulation. Routine operations — opening inspection doors on boilers, repacking steam valves, replacing lagging on deteriorated pipe sections — disturbed asbestos materials and generated airborne fiber. Damage Controlmen (DC) assigned to Gearing-class destroyers also worked with asbestos fire blankets and patched asbestos-containing bulkhead insulation.

Individual Gearing-class ships documented in the asbestos litigation record include USS Gearing (DD-710), USS Cassin Young (DD-793), USS Frank Knox (DD-742), USS Myles C. Fox (DD-829), and dozens of others operated across multiple Navy homeports and deployments during the Cold War.

VA Claims for Gearing-Class Veterans

Veterans who served in engineering billets aboard Gearing-class destroyers before the early 1980s and have since been diagnosed with mesothelioma, asbestosis, or asbestos-related lung cancer may qualify for VA presumptive service connection under 38 CFR § 3.309(d). DD-214 records or official Navy service records identifying a Gearing-class destroyer as a duty station 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 Gearing-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.