USS Independence (CV-62) — Asbestos Aboard the Forrestal Class East Coast Carrier

USS Independence (CV-62) — a Forrestal class large aircraft carrier — was laid down at Brooklyn Navy Yard in July 1955, launched in June 1958, and commissioned in January 1959. The ship was powered by eight Babcock & Wilcox high-pressure boilers driving four sets of turbines producing 280,000 shaft horsepower. USS Independence served with the Atlantic Fleet and as a Sixth Fleet carrier throughout its service life, conducting sustained Mediterranean deployments and participating in operational confrontations including the 1986 Gulf of Sidra operations against Libya and building deployments for the 1990–1991 Gulf War. The ship was homeported at Naval Station Mayport, Florida and later at Naval Air Station North Island, San Diego, conducting its final operational deployments before decommissioning in 1998 after 36 years of commissioned service. The eight-boiler Forrestal class steam propulsion plant throughout the ship was insulated with asbestos-containing materials consistent with mid-1950s naval construction, with Boiler Tenders and Machinist’s Mates maintaining the asbestos-insulated steam plant through the ship’s Cold War Mediterranean and Atlantic deployment service.

Forrestal Class Eight-Boiler Plant Asbestos

Independence’s eight-boiler plant incorporated extensive asbestos insulation:

• Babcock & Wilcox boiler casing insulation — the eight Babcock & Wilcox boilers in Independence’s boiler rooms were insulated with asbestos block insulation on boiler casing exterior surfaces and asbestos pipe covering on boiler steam connections and superheater outlets. Boiler Tenders maintaining the boilers during Mediterranean deployments, Gulf of Sidra operations, and Gulf War buildup patrols worked in continuous proximity to the asbestos boiler casing insulation throughout each engineering watch rotation in the ship’s boiler rooms
• Main turbine and steam system insulation — Independence’s main propulsion turbines and the extensive main steam piping system connecting the eight boilers to the four turbine sets were insulated with asbestos block on turbine casings and asbestos lagging on main steam piping throughout the engineering spaces. Machinist’s Mates tending the turbines and maintaining the main steam system worked in the asbestos-insulated turbine and machinery spaces throughout their propulsion plant watch standing
• Brooklyn Navy Yard construction-era asbestos — USS Independence was constructed at Brooklyn Navy Yard during 1955–1959 using shipyard construction practices and materials incorporating asbestos-containing products throughout the ship’s structure consistent with the mid-1950s naval construction standards. The shipyard workers who built Independence at Brooklyn Navy Yard and the Boiler Tenders and Machinist’s Mates who joined the ship at commissioning accumulated asbestos exposure from the newly installed asbestos materials throughout the ship’s construction and commissioning period

Cold War Mediterranean Service Engineering Operations

Independence’s sustained Sixth Fleet deployments placed engineering demands on the steam plant:

• Mediterranean deployment steam plant operations — USS Independence’s sustained Sixth Fleet Mediterranean deployments — conducting exercises with NATO allies, responding to regional crises, and deterring Soviet naval forces — required the eight-boiler steam plant to support high-tempo carrier aviation operations throughout each deployment period. Engineering ratings aboard Independence during Mediterranean deployments maintained the asbestos-insulated eight-boiler plant throughout the Mediterranean deployment cycle
• Gulf of Sidra and Libya operations — Independence’s participation in the 1986 Gulf of Sidra freedom of navigation operations and the associated air strikes against Libya required sustained high-tempo carrier air operations, with the eight-boiler steam plant supporting intensive flight operations during the Libya confrontation period

VA Claims for USS Independence Veterans

VA presumptive service connection under 38 CFR § 3.309(d) covers asbestos exposure aboard Navy aircraft carriers. Boiler Tenders, Machinist’s Mates, and crew members who served aboard USS Independence (CV-62) 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.