USS Coontz (DLG-9) — Asbestos Aboard the Lead Coontz Class Guided Missile Destroyer

USS Coontz (DLG-9), lead ship of the Coontz class guided missile destroyer leaders, was commissioned at Puget Sound Naval Shipyard in July 1960. Coontz class DLGs were the first operational US Navy ships equipped with the Terrier surface-to-air missile system forward and an ASROC antisubmarine rocket launcher aft, providing both anti-air warfare and ASW capability to carrier battle group escort formations. Coontz and her sister ships in the Coontz class — ten ships in total, later redesignated as CG-9 through CG-15 — served as the backbone of the carrier battle group anti-air warfare escort force throughout the 1960s and 1970s. Coontz’s conventional steam propulsion plant — four boilers and two sets of De Laval geared turbines driving two shafts — provided propulsion through her Cold War service. Commissioned in 1960 at the peak of asbestos use in naval construction, Coontz incorporated extensive asbestos-containing boiler insulation, steam pipe insulation, turbine insulation, and hull construction materials consistent with 1960 naval construction specifications.

USS Coontz Steam Plant Asbestos

Coontz’s four-boiler steam plant incorporated extensive asbestos throughout:

• Boiler insulation — Coontz’s boilers were insulated with asbestos-containing boiler casing insulation and steam drum insulation consistent with 1960 naval construction specifications. Boilermen working in Coontz’s firerooms accumulated asbestos exposure from the boiler insulation throughout her Cold War service
• High-pressure steam main pipe insulation — the high-pressure steam mains throughout Coontz’s engineering spaces incorporated asbestos-containing pipe insulation consistent with 1960 naval construction specifications. Engineering ratings working in Coontz’s machinery spaces encountered steam main insulation during normal operations and maintenance
• De Laval main propulsion turbine insulation — Coontz’s De Laval main propulsion turbines incorporated asbestos-containing turbine casing insulation. Machinist’s Mates performing turbine maintenance worked in proximity to asbestos-containing turbine insulation
• Terrier missile magazine and handling spaces — the Terrier surface-to-air missile magazine and handling room forward aboard Coontz was constructed using 1960 naval construction specifications incorporating asbestos-containing construction materials

USS Coontz Hull Construction Asbestos

Coontz’s 1960 construction incorporated asbestos throughout:

• Crew berthing and working spaces — Coontz’s interior crew berthing areas and working spaces were constructed using 1960 naval construction specifications incorporating asbestos-containing floor tile, overhead insulation, and bulkhead construction materials
• Engineering spaces and propulsion plant — the engineering spaces and propulsion plant compartments aboard Coontz were constructed using 1960 naval construction incorporating asbestos-containing materials consistent with the peak asbestos use period

VA Claims for USS Coontz Veterans

VA presumptive service connection under 38 CFR § 3.309(d) covers asbestos exposure from Navy destroyer steam plant service. Machinist’s Mates, Boilermen, and crew members who served aboard USS Coontz 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.