Tarawa Class Amphibious Assault Ship (LHA-1) — Asbestos in the Multi-Mission Amphibious Ship

The Tarawa class multipurpose amphibious assault ships — five ships commissioned between 1976 and 1980, designated LHA-1 through LHA-5 — were the largest amphibious ships built for the United States Navy since World War II and represented a fundamental advancement in amphibious warfare capability by combining the functions of an amphibious transport dock, dock landing ship, and amphibious cargo ship in a single large hull. Built by Ingalls Shipbuilding at Pascagoula, Mississippi, Tarawa class LHAs displaced nearly 40,000 tons full load and used two Combustion Engineering boilers providing steam to two sets of Westinghouse geared steam turbines driving two shafts. The Tarawa class carried a reinforced Marine battalion landing team with its equipment in a well deck for waterborne assault, with aviation capability for helicopter assault and Harrier STOVL aircraft operations. Tarawa class amphibious assault ships incorporated asbestos-containing boiler insulation and steam plant pipe insulation throughout their two-boiler steam propulsion plants consistent with the mid-1970s construction specifications, and incorporated extensive asbestos-containing interior construction materials in the vast troop berthing, vehicle storage, and crew living spaces of the large amphibious ship hull.

Tarawa Class Steam Plant Asbestos

Tarawa class LHAs incorporated asbestos throughout their CE boiler and Westinghouse turbine propulsion:

• Combustion Engineering boiler casing insulation — the two Combustion Engineering boilers aboard Tarawa class LHAs incorporated asbestos-containing insulation on boiler casings and steam drum surfaces consistent with the mid-1970s boiler construction specifications. Boilermen performing boiler maintenance in Tarawa class firerooms worked in proximity to the asbestos-containing boiler insulation throughout their engineering watch assignments
• High-pressure steam main pipe insulation — the high-pressure steam mains connecting Tarawa class boilers to the Westinghouse main propulsion turbines incorporated asbestos-containing pipe insulation. Engineering ratings working in Tarawa class engine rooms accumulated background asbestos exposure from the steam main pipe insulation
• Westinghouse main propulsion turbine casing insulation — the Westinghouse geared steam turbines aboard Tarawa class LHAs incorporated asbestos-containing turbine casing insulation consistent with the mid-1970s turbine construction. Machinist’s Mates performing turbine maintenance worked in proximity to turbine casing insulation during each turbine maintenance evolution

Tarawa Class Hull and Troop Space Construction Asbestos

The Tarawa class’s large hull incorporated extensive construction-period asbestos:

• Troop berthing compartment construction — the large troop berthing spaces aboard Tarawa class LHAs accommodating several hundred embarked Marines incorporated interior construction materials consistent with the mid-1970s naval construction specifications. Marines and ship’s company personnel living in Tarawa class troop berthing spaces accumulated background asbestos exposure from the hull construction materials throughout their LHA deployments
• Well deck and vehicle storage construction — the well deck area and vehicle storage spaces aboard Tarawa class LHAs used for storing amphibious vehicles and vehicles of the Marine landing force were constructed within the hull using construction materials incorporating asbestos-containing pipe insulation and construction materials consistent with the mid-1970s construction period
• Aviation and maintenance spaces — the aviation maintenance shops and aircraft support spaces within the Tarawa class hull for servicing embarked helicopters and Harrier aircraft incorporated asbestos-containing construction materials consistent with the mid-1970s construction specifications

VA Claims for Tarawa Class Veterans

VA presumptive service connection under 38 CFR § 3.309(d) covers asbestos exposure from Navy amphibious assault ship service. Machinist’s Mates, Boilermen, and crew members who served aboard Tarawa class amphibious assault ships 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.