USS John F. Kennedy (CV-67) — “Big John” — was the only ship of her sub-class (a modified Kitty Hawk-class supercarrier) and the last conventionally-powered aircraft carrier built for the U.S. Navy. Commissioned 7 September 1968 and decommissioned 23 March 2007, she served 38 years across the final phase of the Vietnam War, the 1986 Libya strikes, Desert Shield/Desert Storm, Operation Enduring Freedom, and Iraqi Freedom. The 53-entry equipment manifest below is drawn from BUSHIPS documentation cataloging the machinery installed during her construction at Newport News Shipbuilding.
Equipment Manifest
| Equipment | Manufacturer | Qty | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Main Propulsion Turbines | General Electric | ||
| Reduction Gears | General Electric | ||
| Main Boilers | Babcock & Wilcox | ||
| Forced Draft Blowers | Hardie Tynes | ||
| Safety Valves for Main Boilers | Crosby Valves and Gage Co | ||
| 2500 KW Ship's Service Turbine Generators | DeLaval Turbine | ||
| 3" Trip Throttle Valve | Gimpel Machine Work | ||
| Two Pass Turbo Generator Condenser | DeLaval Turbine | ||
| Air Ejector with Gland Steam Condenser | DeLaval Turbine | ||
| Port Fuel Oil Service Pump | Leslie Co | ||
| Gate Valves for Main Injection | Philadelphia Gear Corp | ||
| Main Overboard Discharge Pump | Philadelphia Gear Corp | ||
| Main Circulating Water Pump | Philadelphia Gear Corp | ||
| Fire Pump | Allis Chalmer | ||
| Centrifugal Pumps | Allis Chalmer | ||
| Pumps - Turbine Driven | Allis Chalmer | ||
| Hose Valve for Sounding Tubes | Walworth Company | ||
| Priming pumps for Emergency Feed Booster Pumps | Nash | ||
| Reserve Feed Transfer Pumps | Nash | ||
| Ship's Service Portable Water Pump | Nash | ||
| JP-5 Service Pump | Nash | ||
| Gate Valves | Walworth Company | ||
| Main Condenser Overboard Discharge Sea Valve | Anchor Equipment | ||
| Angle Stop Valves for High Lift Valves for Boiler Blow Overboard Discharge | Crane | ||
| Main Condenser Pump Salt Water Circulating - Turbine Driven | Warren Pumps | ||
| Vertical Propeller Pump | Warren Pumps | ||
| Turbines | Whiton Machine Co | ||
| Temperature Regulating Valves | Lawler Automatic | ||
| Reciprocating Pumps | Warren Pumps | ||
| Vertical Simplex Pumps | Warren Pumps | ||
| Double Acting Pumps | Warren Pumps | ||
| Gate Valves | Anchor Valves Company | ||
| Angle Valves | Anchor Valves Company | ||
| Stop Valve | Anchor Valves Company | ||
| Fuel Oil Transfer Valves | Anchor Valves Company | ||
| Feed Water Coolers | Davis Engineering | ||
| Boilers | Davis Engineering | ||
| Angle Relief Valves | JE Lonergan | ||
| Fuel Oil Heaters | Aqua Chem | ||
| Conrollers for Distiller Pumps | Cutler Hammer | ||
| Air Conditioning Chilled Water Pumps | Buffalo Forge | ||
| Relief Valves | Kunkle Valves Company | ||
| Hand Pumps | Deming Co | ||
| Main Condenser Sea Water Circulating Pump | Warren Pumps | ||
| Butterfly Valves | Dover Corp | ||
| Check Valves | Walworth Company | ||
| Convection Heaters | Trane | ||
| Gate Valves | Crane | ||
| Fire Pumps | Buffalo | ||
| Centrifugal Pumps | Buffalo | ||
| Check Valves | Atwood & Morrill | ||
| Hydraulic Operated Valves | CLA-VAL | ||
| Lube Oil Purifier Heater | American Standard |
Asbestos-Containing Materials Aboard John F. Kennedy
The standard asbestos-containing materials installed throughout U.S. Navy aircraft carriers of this era are documented to have included:
- Pipe lagging and thermal insulation on main steam, feed-water, fuel-oil, condensate, and saltwater piping throughout machinery spaces
- Boiler block insulation, refractory brick, and gun-blocks around the main boilers
- Asbestos gaskets and braided packing in valves, flanges, pumps, condensers, heat exchangers, and turbine glands
- Insulation jackets and removable lagging on main propulsion turbines, reduction gears, ship-service turbine generators, and forced-draft blowers
- Sheet asbestos and Marinite panels as fire-stops, bulkhead insulation, and overhead insulation
- Vinyl asbestos floor tile (VAT) in passageways, berthing, mess decks, and habitable compartments
- Asbestos rope, wick, and tape in gland-seal applications throughout the engineering plant
Sailors in Boilerman, Machinist’s Mate, Engineman, Electrician’s Mate, Hull Maintenance Technician, Damage Controlman, and other engineering ratings worked routinely in spaces where these materials were installed, maintained, ripped out, and replaced.
VA Benefits for John F. Kennedy Veterans
The Department of Veterans Affairs recognizes mesothelioma, asbestos-related lung cancer, asbestosis, and pleural disease as conditions presumed to be service-connected for Navy veterans with documented asbestos exposure. The John F. Kennedy equipment manifest is direct documentary evidence of the asbestos-containing materials her crew worked around throughout her service life.
Parallel claims against the asbestos bankruptcy trust funds established by the manufacturers of these products are also available, and do not reduce VA compensation.
Speak with an asbestos attorney with Navy veterans experience →
Equipment manifest derived from public-record BUSHIPS documentation specific to USS John F. Kennedy (CV-67). Manufacturer attribution links to documented asbestos-product histories on AsbestosIndex.com where available. Editorial review applied per site standards.