THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Saturday, July 22, 1995 TAG: 9507220239
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B5 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: STAFF REPORT
LENGTH: Short : 33 lines
The Navy confirmed Friday that it will station its newest nuclear-powered aircraft carrier, the John C. Stennis, in Norfolk.
With the Stennis will be a crew of 161 officers, 2,922 enlisted men and women, and their nearly billion-dollar annual payroll.
The announcement came Friday in a letter to members of Congress from Virginia and Mississippi.
The John C. Stennis, called ``JCS'' for short, was named for the retired Mississippi senator and Armed Services Committee chairman who served in Congress from 1947 to 1989. During his tenure, the Navy acquired 16 carriers.
The ship has been under construction at Newport News Shipbuilding since March 13, 1991, when its keel was laid.
The $3.5 billion carrier is scheduled for its first builder's trials - steaming out of Chesapeake Bay and into the Atlantic - in October. Assuming all goes well, the ship will be formally turned over to the Navy in a Veteran's Day ceremony Nov. 11. It was christened that same date in 1993.
As of April 17, 129 officers and 1,618 enlisted men had been assigned to duties on the John C. Stennis. Their annual payroll is almost $68.2 million. Those crew members are just 56 percent of the ship's total complement, which eventually is expected to include 241 women. by CNB