USS Wisconsin (BB-64) — Asbestos in the Iowa Class Battleship

USS Wisconsin (BB-64), an Iowa class battleship commissioned April 16, 1944 at the Philadelphia Navy Yard (Philadelphia, Pennsylvania), served in WWII Pacific operations including the Philippines campaign and raids on the Japanese home islands before the 1945 surrender. Wisconsin was powered by eight Babcock & Wilcox boilers driving four General Electric geared turbines producing 212,000 shaft horsepower. Wisconsin was decommissioned after WWII, reactivated for Korean War shore bombardment (1950–1958), decommissioned again, and finally reactivated in 1988 to serve in Operation Desert Storm in 1991, during which Wisconsin fired Tomahawk cruise missiles at targets in Iraq — the final combat action by any US battleship. Wisconsin is preserved as a museum ship in Norfolk, Virginia.

Iowa Class Steam Plant and Asbestos

USS Wisconsin’s eight-boiler WWII steam plant used asbestos-containing materials throughout the engineering plant:

• Main boiler insulation — Wisconsin’s eight Babcock & Wilcox boilers in four fire rooms used asbestos block insulation on boiler casings and asbestos refractory materials in the firebox construction. BT ratings maintaining Wisconsin’s boilers during the ship’s three active service periods worked in direct proximity to asbestos-insulated boiler casings
• Main steam system insulation — the high-pressure main steam piping from Wisconsin’s boilers to four turbine sets covered the 887-foot battleship hull, insulated with asbestos pipe covering from the 1944 wartime construction. Machinist’s Mates and Boiler Technicians in the engineering spaces were in continuous proximity to asbestos-insulated steam lines
• Turbine insulation — Wisconsin’s four main propulsion turbines and reduction gear used asbestos-containing insulation lagging consistent with WWII battleship construction
• Auxiliary steam systems — Wisconsin’s extensive auxiliary steam systems for electrical generation, crew habitability systems, and damage control used asbestos-insulated distribution piping throughout the ship

Three Active Service Periods

Wisconsin’s extended service across three reactivations created broad asbestos exposure windows:

• WWII service (1944–1948) — original commissioning and WWII Pacific operations with complete WWII asbestos construction throughout the battleship
• Korean War reactivation (1950–1958) — reactivation for Korean War shore bombardment with original WWII asbestos insulation retained throughout the battleship’s engineering spaces
• Gulf War reactivation (1988–1991) — final reactivation including the 1991 Operation Desert Storm deployment; Wisconsin’s original hull and interior retained asbestos-containing materials from the 1944 construction in non-modernized sections throughout this service period

Interior Crew Spaces

Wisconsin’s interior used WWII-era construction materials throughout:

• Crew berthing, mess decks, head compartments, and working spaces throughout Wisconsin’s hull used WWII construction products including asbestos deck tile, asbestos-containing overhead insulation, and period bulkhead construction throughout the battleship’s three service eras

VA Claims for USS Wisconsin 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 Wisconsin (BB-64) during any active service period 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.