USS Ticonderoga (CVA-14) was an Essex-class aircraft carrier commissioned in May 1944 at the Newport News Shipbuilding and Dry Dock Company and extensively modernized through the SCB-125 angle-deck conversion and later through the CVS anti-submarine warfare conversion program. Ticonderoga is historically significant for her role in the August 1964 Gulf of Tonkin incident and conducted two Vietnam combat cruises. The ship served as both an attack carrier (CVA) operating strike aircraft and as an anti-submarine carrier (CVS) operating ASW helicopters before decommissioning in 1973. Ticonderoga’s WWII-era and early Cold War construction incorporated asbestos throughout her engineering plant, steam system, and accommodation spaces.

Engineering Plant Asbestos

Ticonderoga’s Essex-class steam plant used asbestos insulation extensively:

  • Boiler plant — Ticonderoga’s Babcock & Wilcox boilers used asbestos boiler lagging on exterior surfaces, asbestos refractory brick in combustion chambers, and asbestos rope seals on boiler access doors and manholes. BT ratings maintaining the boiler plant performed lagging removal and replacement that disturbed asbestos-containing materials at each maintenance interval
  • Steam piping system — the main steam and auxiliary steam distribution piping throughout Ticonderoga’s engineering spaces used asbestos pipe covering insulation on the high-temperature steam lines. MM ratings on engineering watch in the firerooms and enginerooms worked in spaces where asbestos pipe covering was present throughout the piping runs overhead and on the bulkheads
  • Turbine and reduction gear insulation — main propulsion and ship’s service turbine generator insulation used asbestos-containing materials in turbine casing and steam chest insulation

Accommodation and Interior Asbestos

Ticonderoga’s interior construction reflected WWII-era naval construction standards:

  • Crew accommodation spaces — Ticonderoga’s crew berthing compartments, mess decks, and working spaces used asbestos deck tile and overhead insulation consistent with Essex-class WWII construction
  • Damage control supplies — asbestos-containing patch materials, lagging compounds, and asbestos cloth were part of Ticonderoga’s on-board damage control repair inventory

Gulf of Tonkin Operations

Ticonderoga’s 1964 Vietnam cruise placed the ship at the center of the Gulf of Tonkin incident:

  • The ship and crew conducted sustained combat operations in the Gulf of Tonkin during the 1964 and 1965-66 Vietnam cruises, with crew members occupying the ship’s asbestos-containing engineering and accommodation spaces throughout the Vietnam deployments

VA Claims for USS Ticonderoga Veterans

VA evaluates asbestos-related disability claims on a case-by-case basis. Veterans generally need evidence of in-service asbestos exposure, a current asbestos-related diagnosis, and a medical link between them. Engineering ratings who served aboard USS Ticonderoga and have since been diagnosed with mesothelioma, asbestosis, or asbestos-related lung cancer may qualify for VA disability benefits.

Product & Manufacturer Reference

The asbestos-containing products documented on U.S. Navy vessels and at shipyards are catalogued by manufacturer on AsbestosIndex. These records cross-reference which companies supplied which materials and to which facilities.

Pipe Covering & Block Insulation Thermal insulation applied to steam lines, valves, and equipment in engine rooms and fire rooms Marine Products Insulation, gaskets, and packing products specified for naval and commercial marine applications Boilers & Steam Equipment Boiler manufacturers and insulation products — central to the fire room exposure pathway Gaskets & Packing Sheet and ring gaskets used throughout piping flanges, valve bonnets, and pump housings Electrical Products Wire insulation, switchgear arc chutes, and panel liners used throughout electrical spaces Full Product Index Search all 200+ manufacturers and 1,500+ documented asbestos products on AsbestosIndex™

Navy Ratings Most Exposed to Asbestos Aboard Ticonderoga

The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs and the public asbestos litigation record document that the following Navy ratings worked routinely in spaces where ACM was installed, maintained, ripped out, and replaced:

VA Disability Claims for Asbestos-Related Disease

The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs evaluates asbestos claims individually. A veteran generally needs medical evidence of a current asbestos-related disease, service evidence supporting in-service asbestos exposure, and a medical opinion connecting the two. Ship assignments, Navy ratings, and equipment records can help document the exposure history but do not create automatic service connection.

Approved claims may provide monthly disability compensation and related benefits. Survivors may separately qualify for Dependency & Indemnity Compensation when the applicable requirements are met. Civil lawsuits and asbestos-trust claims use different standards; claimants should obtain individualized advice about how the processes interact.

How to file a VA disability claim: VA claims are filed directly with the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs — not with a law firm. Start at VA.gov › Hazardous Materials Exposure, call 1‑800‑827‑1000, or get free help filing from a Veterans Service Organization: DAV, VFW, or American Legion.

VA Claims Guide on This Site › Compare: VA vs. Civil Lawsuit

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.