USS New Jersey (BB-62) — Asbestos in the Iowa Class Battleship

USS New Jersey (BB-62), an Iowa class battleship commissioned May 23, 1943 at the Philadelphia Navy Yard (Philadelphia, Pennsylvania), served the US Navy across three wars — WWII Pacific operations, Korean War shore bombardment, and Vietnam War naval gunfire support — before her final reactivation in 1982 and decommissioning in 1991. New Jersey was armed with nine 16-inch guns in three triple turrets and powered by eight Babcock & Wilcox boilers driving four Westinghouse geared steam turbines. Homeported at NS Long Beach and subsequently NS Puget Sound, New Jersey was the most decorated battleship in US Navy history.

Iowa Class Steam Plant and Asbestos

USS New Jersey’s massive WWII-era steam plant used asbestos throughout the engineering plant:

• Main boiler insulation — the eight Babcock & Wilcox boilers in New Jersey’s four fire rooms used asbestos block insulation on boiler casings and asbestos refractory materials throughout the firebox construction. Boiler Technicians maintaining New Jersey’s boilers worked in direct contact with asbestos-insulated boiler casings throughout the battleship’s multiple active service periods
• Main steam system pipe insulation — the high-pressure main steam piping running from eight boilers through four engineering spaces to four sets of main propulsion turbines covered enormous distance in the 887-foot battleship hull, all insulated with asbestos pipe covering throughout the 1943 construction. Engineering personnel performing steam system maintenance worked continuously in proximity to asbestos-insulated piping in these extensive engineering spaces
• Turbine and reduction gear insulation — the four main propulsion turbines developing 212,000 shaft horsepower total used asbestos-containing insulation lagging consistent with WWII-era battleship construction

Multiple Reactivation History

USS New Jersey’s multiple reactivations created extended asbestos exposure periods:

• WWII original service (1943-1948) — original commissioning and WWII Pacific service with the ship’s complete original WWII asbestos-containing construction
• Korean War reactivation (1950-1957) — reactivation for Korean War gunfire support with the original asbestos insulation present throughout the battleship
• Vietnam War reactivation (1967-1969) — second reactivation for Vietnam naval gunfire support with aging original asbestos insulation still present throughout the battleship
• 1982-1991 reactivation — final reactivation with major modernization but substantial retention of older asbestos-containing material in the battleship’s original hull sections

Interior Construction Throughout

New Jersey’s 63,000-ton displacement battleship hull used standard WWII construction materials:

• The crew berthing, mess, and working spaces throughout the battleship’s enormous interior used WWII-era construction materials including asbestos floor tile, overhead insulation, and bulkhead construction throughout

VA Claims for USS New Jersey Veterans

VA presumptive service connection under 38 CFR § 3.309(d) covers asbestos exposure aboard Iowa class battleships. Engineering ratings and crew members who served aboard USS New Jersey (BB-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.