USS Blue Ridge (LCC-19)
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 USS Blue Ridge |
|
| Career (US) |  |
|---|---|
| Name: | USS Blue Ridge |
| Namesake: | Blue Ridge Mountains |
| Operator: |  United States Navy |
| Ordered: | 31 December 1964 |
| Laid down: | 27 February 1967 |
| Launched: | 4 January 1969 |
| Commissioned: | 14 November 1970 |
| Homeport: | Yokosuka, Japan |
| Motto: | Finest in the Fleet |
| Nickname: | "Building 19" "Let's Clean Continuously for 19 hours a day!" "The Cruise Ship" "The Blue Cruiser" "Large Cabin Cruiser" |
| General characteristics | |
| Class and type: | Blue Ridge class command ship |
| Displacement: | 19,609 tons |
| Length: | 194 m (636.5 ft) |
| Beam: | 32.9 m (108 ft) |
| Draft: | 8.8 m (26.9 ft) |
| Propulsion: | Two boilers, one geared turbine |
| Speed: | 23 knots |
| Range: | 10,000 Nautical Miles |
| Complement: | Crew: 52 Officer, 790 Enlisted With Command Staff: 268 Officers, 1173 Enlisted |
| Armament: | 2× Phalanx CIWS guns 2× 25 mm Bushmaster cannons 4× .50 cal. Machine guns Mark 36 SRBOC chaff rockets |
| Aircraft carried: | One helicopter, currently a Sikorsky SH-60 Seahawk |
The USS Blue Ridge (LCC-19) is the lead ship of the two Blue Ridge-class command ships of the U.S. Navy. She is the third Navy ship named after the Blue Ridge Mountains, a range of mountains in the Appalachian Mountains of the eastern United States.
The USS Blue Ridge was commissioned on 14 November 1970, at the Philadelphia Naval Shipyard as a command and control ship for the Navy. With accommodations for more than 200 officers and 1200 enlisted men, the ship provides all the services of a small town.
From 1971 until 1979, the Blue Ridge operated from San Diego, California, where she deployed to the Western Pacific, earning the Meritorious Unit Commendation and Navy Unit Commendation for the evacuation of Saigon in 1975.
Since October 1979, the Blue Ridge has been forward-deployed at the Yokosuka Naval Base in Yokosuka, Japan as the flagship of the US Seventh Fleet. The Blue Ridge participates routinely in U.S. and allied training exercise each year with countries throughout the Western Pacific and Indian Ocean.
The Blue Ridge performed a nine-and-one-half month deployment as flagship for the Commander, United States Naval Forces Central Command (COMUSNAVCENT) during Operations Desert Shield and Desert Storm from August 1990 through 24 April 1991, for which the warship earned another Navy Unit Commendation.
The Blue Ridge frequently makes port calls throughout the Western Pacific and Indian Ocean including Japan, South Korea, Hong Kong, Singapore, Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, and Australia. She made her historic port visit to Shanghai, China in 1989, 2001 and again in 2004. She also visited Vladivostok, Russia, in 1996, 2003 and 2006. The ship has been cited for rescues of refugees and merchant vessel sailors.
The Blue Ridge left Laem Chabang Port after a short visit to Asian University in Chonburi, Thailand on 7 May 2008, [1] and docked in Manila, Philippines on 22 May for a 3 day goodwill visit, and also, for her crew to help construct Gawad Kalinga homes.[2]
[edit] References
- This article includes text from the public domain Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships. The entry can be found here.
[edit] External links
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to: USS Blue Ridge (LCC-19) |
- USS Blue Ridge official Web site
- USS Blue Ridge News
- Yokosuka Naval Base Community Website
- navsource.org: USS Blue Ridge
[edit] Notes
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