Iowa Class Battleship Individual Ships — USS Iowa, Wisconsin, Missouri, New Jersey

The four Iowa class battleships — USS Iowa (BB-61), USS New Jersey (BB-62), USS Missouri (BB-63), and USS Wisconsin (BB-64) — represent the last and largest battleships built for the United States Navy and among the most heavily armed warships ever constructed, mounting nine 16-inch/50 caliber guns in three triple turrets along with a comprehensive secondary and anti-aircraft battery. All four ships served in the WWII Pacific and Atlantic theaters, with USS Missouri (BB-63) hosting the Japanese surrender ceremony in Tokyo Bay on September 2, 1945. USS New Jersey (BB-62) served in Vietnam in 1968–1969, providing naval gunfire support along the Vietnamese coast. All four ships were reactivated in the 1980s during the Reagan administration’s 600-ship Navy buildup, with USS New Jersey and Missouri deployed during the 1982–1984 Lebanon crisis and all four ships participating in the 1991 Gulf War. Each Iowa class battleship was powered by eight Babcock & Wilcox high-pressure boilers driving four sets of General Electric geared turbines producing 212,000 shaft horsepower — the same basic propulsion plant as the Midway class carriers. The eight-boiler steam propulsion plant and the enormous gun turret and magazine systems in each Iowa class battleship were constructed with asbestos-containing materials consistent with WWII-era naval construction, creating sustained asbestos exposure for engineering and weapons system ratings through both the original WWII service and the 1980s reactivation.

Iowa Class Eight-Boiler Steam Plant Asbestos

All four Iowa class battleships incorporated extensive asbestos in their propulsion plants:

• Babcock & Wilcox boiler casing insulation aboard all four ships — the eight Babcock & Wilcox boilers in each Iowa class battleship’s four boiler rooms were insulated with asbestos block insulation on boiler casing exterior surfaces and asbestos pipe covering on steam connections. Boiler Tenders aboard USS Iowa, New Jersey, Missouri, and Wisconsin maintained the eight boilers in continuous proximity to the asbestos boiler casing insulation throughout WWII operations, Korean War service, and the 1980s reactivation deployments
• General Electric turbine insulation — the GE geared turbines in Iowa class engine rooms were insulated with asbestos block on turbine casings and asbestos lagging on high-pressure steam piping. Machinist’s Mates serving on all four Iowa class ships worked in the asbestos-insulated turbine spaces throughout their propulsion plant watch standing
• 1980s reactivation with legacy asbestos — when all four Iowa class battleships were reactivated in the 1980s, the WWII-era asbestos-insulated propulsion plants were brought back to operational status with the legacy asbestos insulation largely intact. Engineering ratings serving aboard the reactivated Iowa class battleships maintained the 40-year-old asbestos-insulated steam plant throughout the 1980s reactivation deployments

Iowa Class 16-Inch Gun Turret Asbestos

The enormous Iowa class gun turrets incorporated asbestos in turret construction:

• 16"/50 caliber turret electrical and hydraulic system insulation — the three 16-inch/50 caliber gun turrets aboard each Iowa class battleship — the largest gun turrets ever installed on US warships — incorporated asbestos-containing electrical insulation and asbestos-containing gasket materials in the turret hydraulic training and elevation drive systems. Gunner’s Mates assigned to Iowa class battleship gun turret maintenance accumulated asbestos exposure from the turret electrical and hydraulic system asbestos materials in addition to background asbestos exposure from the turret structure construction
• Powder handling and magazine space construction — the powder handling rooms and magazine spaces serving the Iowa class 16-inch turrets were constructed with asbestos-containing structural materials in the magazine space construction. Gunner’s Mates and ammunition handling ratings working in Iowa class magazine and powder handling spaces accumulated background asbestos exposure from the magazine space construction

VA Claims for Iowa Class Battleship Veterans

VA presumptive service connection under 38 CFR § 3.309(d) covers asbestos exposure aboard Navy battleships. Boiler Tenders, Machinist’s Mates, Gunner’s Mates, and crew members who served aboard USS Iowa (BB-61), USS New Jersey (BB-62), USS Missouri (BB-63), or USS Wisconsin (BB-64) during WWII, Korean War, Vietnam, or 1980s reactivation service 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.