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Did you serve aboard the USS Lexington? This aircraft carrier carried asbestos in nearly every compartment. Here is where it was, and who is responsible. The USS Lexington, hull number CV-16, was an aircraft carrier, built by Fore River Shipyard and commissioned in 1943. She served through WWII Pacific Theater, Cold War Atlantic and Mediterraneans, and Cold War Pacific operationss-s. Public naval references list this equipment aboard the USS Lexington, CV-16 — insulated and sealed with asbestos. Each shipyard overhaul and major repair meant asbestos insulation was torn out and replaced — peak-exposure work for the yard workers and the crew aboard. Exposure was worst in the engineering spaces, where the snipes worked — but asbestos lined the whole ship, so all hands were exposed. The companies that made the asbestos equipment aboard — not the Navy — are who asbestos claims are brought against. According to asbestos litigation records, the equipment aboard the USS Lexington from makers such as Babcock and Wilcox, Sturtevant, Terry, and Westinghouse allegedly contained asbestos. If you served aboard the USS Lexington and were later diagnosed with mesothelioma, asbestosis, or another asbestos-related disease, you may have a legal claim against the companies that made the asbestos products used aboard your ship. This is educational information from an independent publisher — not a law firm — and is not legal advice.

USS Lexington (CV-16) is a essex-class aircraft carrier in the U.S. asbestos litigation record. The equipment manifest below is a class-pattern reference assembled from manufacturer and machinery entries documented across 29 sister ships of the same class. Ship-specific BUSHIPS documentation for USS Lexington (CV-16) herself has not yet been published; this pattern reflects what was standard for vessels of this class.

Class Equipment Pattern

Equipment Manifest — USS Lexington (CV-16). 29 machinery/equipment entries identified through ship-specific BUSHIPS documentation. Manufacturers in bold link to documented asbestos-product history on AsbestosIndex.com.
EquipmentManufacturerQtyNotes
BoilersBabcock & WilcoxDocumented across 4 sister-ship records of the Essex-class aircraft carrier
Auxiliary Feed Booster PumpsWorthingtonDocumented across 3 sister-ship records of the Essex-class aircraft carrier
Fuel Oil Service PumpsQuimbyDocumented across 3 sister-ship records of the Essex-class aircraft carrier
Leslie RegulatorsLeslieDocumented across 3 sister-ship records of the Essex-class aircraft carrier
Main CondensersWestinghouseDocumented across 3 sister-ship records of the Essex-class aircraft carrier
Main Feed PumpsWorthingtonDocumented across 3 sister-ship records of the Essex-class aircraft carrier
Air CompressorIngersoll-RandDocumented across 2 sister-ship records of the Essex-class aircraft carrier
Air EjectorsS.H. WheelerDocumented across 2 sister-ship records of the Essex-class aircraft carrier
CondensersWestinghouseDocumented across 2 sister-ship records of the Essex-class aircraft carrier
Diesel Fuel Oil PurifierDeLavalDocumented across 2 sister-ship records of the Essex-class aircraft carrier
Diesel Fuel Oil Service PumpsNorthernDocumented across 2 sister-ship records of the Essex-class aircraft carrier
Distilling PlantsGriscom RussellDocumented across 2 sister-ship records of the Essex-class aircraft carrier
EconomizersFoster WheelerDocumented across 2 sister-ship records of the Essex-class aircraft carrier
Fire & Flushing Pump TurbinesSturtevantDocumented across 2 sister-ship records of the Essex-class aircraft carrier
Fire & Flushing PumpsWarrenDocumented across 2 sister-ship records of the Essex-class aircraft carrier
Fuel Oil HeatersGriscom-RussellDocumented across 2 sister-ship records of the Essex-class aircraft carrier
Fuel Oil Service Pump TurbinesTerryDocumented across 2 sister-ship records of the Essex-class aircraft carrier
Hp Air CompressorIngersoll-RandDocumented across 2 sister-ship records of the Essex-class aircraft carrier
Hp Air CompressorsIngersoll RandDocumented across 2 sister-ship records of the Essex-class aircraft carrier
Lp Drain PumpsWarrenDocumented across 2 sister-ship records of the Essex-class aircraft carrier
Main Air EjectorsWestinghouseDocumented across 2 sister-ship records of the Essex-class aircraft carrier
Main Circulating Pump TurbinesWestinghouseDocumented across 2 sister-ship records of the Essex-class aircraft carrier
Main Circulating PumpsWestinghouseDocumented across 2 sister-ship records of the Essex-class aircraft carrier
Main Condensate Pump TurbinesWestinghouseDocumented across 2 sister-ship records of the Essex-class aircraft carrier
Main Feed Booster Pump TurbinesSturtevantDocumented across 2 sister-ship records of the Essex-class aircraft carrier
Main Feed Booster PumpsWorthingtonDocumented across 2 sister-ship records of the Essex-class aircraft carrier
Main Feed Pump TurbinesSturtevantDocumented across 2 sister-ship records of the Essex-class aircraft carrier
Reduction GearsWestinghouseDocumented across 2 sister-ship records of the Essex-class aircraft carrier
Refrigeration RrYorkDocumented across 2 sister-ship records of the Essex-class aircraft carrier

Note: this manifest is a class-level pattern derived from sister-ship BUSHIPS records and public asbestos litigation documents. Individual ship-specific variations may exist. Where ship-specific documentation becomes available for USS Lexington (CV-16), this page will be updated to reflect her unique equipment profile.

Documented Asbestos Evidence — USS Lexington (CV-16)

Valve gaskets — Crane Co. (confirmed shipment records)

A Crane Co. shipper’s document (Shipper’s No. S-48790, Crane Order 14790, S.O. No. 885499) shows a Crane Co. shipment addressed to USS Lexington CVT-16, Naval Air Station, Pensacola, Florida 32508 — a primary-source record linking Crane Co. asbestos-containing valve gaskets to USS Lexington during her years as a training carrier.

MAS gasket survey (Corpus Christi, January 2010)

Materials Analytical Services (MAS) conducted a physical gasket survey aboard USS Lexington (now a museum ship at Corpus Christi, Texas) on January 24, 2010. The survey was conducted on behalf of Crane Co. for litigation purposes and examined Crane Co.-type steam valves containing asbestos gaskets. Samples were taken during removal of flange and bonnet asbestos-containing gaskets from:

  • Four Crane Co. steam valves
  • One Chapman valve (Crane Co. acquired Chapman Valve Company in 1959)

All sampled valves were elevated-pressure and temperature steam valves most likely installed aboard Lexington prior to 1991. This survey establishes that asbestos-containing Crane Co. gaskets were physically present in Lexington’s steam valves and were still present at decommissioning (1991) and into the museum era.

Ship history relevant to exposure claims

USS Lexington (CV-16) served approximately 30 years as a training carrier (CVT/CVT-16) operating from Naval Air Station Pensacola, Florida. Her long training-carrier career means that thousands of Navy personnel across multiple decades cycled through her engineering spaces during the heaviest asbestos-use period. The ship was:

  • Constructed 1942–1943 (Essex class)
  • Operating period of litigation interest: 1956–1991
  • Decommissioned 1991
  • Donated as museum ship June 15, 1992 (now USS Lexington Museum on the Bay, Corpus Christi, Texas)

At the time of at least one deposition, asbestos-containing insulation was still present in the engine rooms, described as “largely non-asbestos” with “some” asbestos insulation remaining “until they scrap it.”

Engine room insulation

Expert testimony identifies “a specific record of the presence of asbestos throughout the USS Lexington and other vessels of its class” in ship plans, with asbestos-containing insulation confirmed as present in the engine rooms — the primary exposure space for engineering ratings.

Veterans who served aboard USS Lexington (CV-16) — Pensacola training or otherwise: If you worked in the engine room, boiler room, or performed valve maintenance, your service period may support a VA asbestos claim, civil lawsuit, or trust fund recovery.

Free, confidential case evaluation: Speak with O’Brien Law Firm — (314) 936-2956

All consultations are free. No fee unless a financial recovery is made on your behalf.

References to equipment, asbestos products, and litigation history reflect what has been alleged or documented in publicly filed asbestos litigation. This does not constitute a finding of fact or liability. This site does not provide legal or medical advice.

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 Lexington

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.