OT: How the Navy Sent A Battleship to Attack Vietnam

[BROTHERSKINNY]

USS New Jersey Was the Only U.S. Battleship to see Service in Vietnam - Built during the Second World War, the Iowa-class were the largest battleships ever built for the United States Navy. Four of the planned six were completed, and they played a significant role in ensuring America's victory in the Pacific – and all four also saw service in the Korean War. However, only one would go on to see action in Vietnam.
Known as the "Big J" or "Black Dragon," USS New Jersey (BB-62) also has the distinction of being one of the most decorated battleships to have served in the U.S. Navy, while she was also among the largest warships ever built. The second of the Iowa-class, like her sister vessels, she was designed as a "fast battleship" that could travel with a carrier force and take the fight to the Japanese during World War II.

Launched on December 7, 1942 – a year after the Japanese sneak attack on Pearl Harbor – the New Jersey was commissioned in May 1943 and began her career as the flagship of the 5th Fleet under Adm. Raymond A. Spruance.

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/how-the-navy-sent-a-battleship-to-attack-vietnam/ar-AA1fF6fv?ocid=entnewsntp&cvid=6cc6bba893444a62b336caefd2208dcc&ei=11​

 

[RU4Real]

The New Jersey was also used to bombard Lebanon in December of 1983.

1983 was one of those years that saw us come far closer to the end of the world than most people understand.

Good pic of BB-62 unloading on Beirut:

 

[Southern Gentleman]

My father in law served on the New Jersey during WW2. He was a good man. R.I.P.

 

[jmc11201]

The New Jersey was also used to bombard Lebanon in December of 1983.

1983 was one of those years that saw us come far closer to the end of the world than most people understand.

Good pic of BB-62 unloading on Beirut:

I was 6 in 1983. Care to elaborate?

 

[Southern Gentleman]

I was 6 in 1983. Care to elaborate?

Much like today. Too much testosterone amongst world leaders trying to force their will upon others.
‘The beat goes on.

 

[WhiteBus]

USS New Jersey Was the Only U.S. Battleship to see Service in Vietnam - Built during the Second World War, the Iowa-class were the largest battleships ever built for the United States Navy. Four of the planned six were completed, and they played a significant role in ensuring America's victory in the Pacific – and all four also saw service in the Korean War. However, only one would go on to see action in Vietnam.
Known as the "Big J" or "Black Dragon," USS New Jersey (BB-62) also has the distinction of being one of the most decorated battleships to have served in the U.S. Navy, while she was also among the largest warships ever built. The second of the Iowa-class, like her sister vessels, she was designed as a "fast battleship" that could travel with a carrier force and take the fight to the Japanese during World War II.

Launched on December 7, 1942 – a year after the Japanese sneak attack on Pearl Harbor – the New Jersey was commissioned in May 1943 and began her career as the flagship of the 5th Fleet under Adm. Raymond A. Spruance.

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/how-the-navy-sent-a-battleship-to-attack-vietnam/ar-AA1fF6fv?ocid=entnewsntp&cvid=6cc6bba893444a62b336caefd2208dcc&ei=11​

Surprised that anyone from NJ that is into military history didn't know all of this already since the battleship has been docked on the Camden waterfront since September of 2001.
What is news is the Big J is returning to dry dock number 3 at the Navy Shipyard in Philadelphia, the same dock where it was built & put into service and reactivated in 1967. Repairs and maintenance will take up to 3 months. A date in September has not been set for the move but when it does happen I'll be on the Philly side watching her move through the Delaware. She will be guided not towed by tugs is the current rumor as her engines have been heard recently.

Battleship New Jersey is headed to the dry dock. Here’s when it will reopen as a museum.

The Battleship New Jersey will be towed to Philadelphia for the work.

www.google.com

 

[RU4Real]

I was 6 in 1983. Care to elaborate?

I was in the USAF in '83, tasked to NORAD. There was a lot of back and forth between the US and USSR. The simplest way to say it is that during the Reagan administration the Cold War was, from time to time, an actual shooting war - you just never heard about it. Reagan announced his "Star Wars" effort and the Russians got even crankier. The US military spent the last half of the year on high alert. Things got testy in Europe. Then there was something of a software glitch with the missile warning systems and it looked very much like there had been a launch event from the USSR, everything went bat shit and we had 24 hours of terror. On top of that, all the tension in the Middle East culminated in the Beirut Bombing which, in October of '83, killed something like 240 US Marines in their barracks at the embassy.

When that happened, Reagan went sideways. He made it very clear that he was going to vaporize anyone who continued to screw with the U.S. We sent troops into Lebanon to fight the Druze militias responsible for all the fuss and, in December of that year, the USS New Jersey parked itself 20 miles off the coast and spent the better part of an entire day raining 2000 lb. shells on "suspected militia positions" in Beirut. It was something to behold.

 

[RU Husky]

I was an artillery Fire Direction Officer in Vietnam in 1969. Early in that year(Jan-Feb) our battery was put on notice that we would be firing on targets in conjunction with the New Jersey ( bunker busting) and I had to get up to speed on the capabilities of her big 16 inch guns. My unit was 155mm howitzers which were like slingshots in comparison. Instead, the New Jersey stayed off the coast further north and fired in support of missions in I Corps and along the DMZ . So, we never got that opportunity.

 

[RobertG]

I was in the USAF in '83, tasked to NORAD. There was a lot of back and forth between the US and USSR. The simplest way to say it is that during the Reagan administration the Cold War was, from time to time, an actual shooting war - you just never heard about it. Reagan announced his "Star Wars" effort and the Russians got even crankier. The US military spent the last half of the year on high alert. Things got testy in Europe. Then there was something of a software glitch with the missile warning systems and it looked very much like there had been a launch event from the USSR, everything went bat shit and we had 24 hours of terror. On top of that, all the tension in the Middle East culminated in the Beirut Bombing which, in October of '83, killed something like 240 US Marines in their barracks at the embassy.

When that happened, Reagan went sideways. He made it very clear that he was going to vaporize anyone who continued to screw with the U.S. We sent troops into Lebanon to fight the Druze militias responsible for all the fuss and, in December of that year, the USS New Jersey parked itself 20 miles off the coast and spent the better part of an entire day raining 2000 lb. shells on "suspected militia positions" in Beirut. It was something to behold.

Hey didn't they make a movie about the incident with the software glitch? I think it stared Mattew Broderick.

 

[RU4Real]

Hey didn't they make a movie about the incident with the software glitch? I think it stared Mattew Broderick.

Coincidence. Actually the movie, released in 1983, preceded the false missile alerts.

 

[BROTHERSKINNY]

Surprised that anyone from NJ that is into military history didn't know all of this already since the battleship has been docked on the Camden waterfront since September of 2001.
What is news is the Big J is returning to dry dock number 3 at the Navy Shipyard in Philadelphia, the same dock where it was built & put into service and reactivated in 1967. Repairs and maintenance will take up to 3 months. A date in September has not been set for the move but when it does happen I'll be on the Philly side watching her move through the Delaware. She will be guided not towed by tugs is the current rumor as her engines have been heard recently.

Battleship New Jersey is headed to the dry dock. Here’s when it will reopen as a museum.

The Battleship New Jersey will be towed to Philadelphia for the work.

www.google.com

White Bus, I am very into history, especially military history with an emphasis on WWII. Now that we are on the subject, Did you know that Camp Kilmer was the largest east coast embarkation camp during WWII for GI's going to and returing from Europe? How about the fact that the Belle Mead Army Depot was the largest supply depot for the European theater of Operations for supplies and ordnance? NJ played a huge roll in the success of WWII victory.

 

[RUTGERS95]

USS New Jersey Was the Only U.S. Battleship to see Service in Vietnam - Built during the Second World War, the Iowa-class were the largest battleships ever built for the United States Navy. Four of the planned six were completed, and they played a significant role in ensuring America's victory in the Pacific – and all four also saw service in the Korean War. However, only one would go on to see action in Vietnam.
Known as the "Big J" or "Black Dragon," USS New Jersey (BB-62) also has the distinction of being one of the most decorated battleships to have served in the U.S. Navy, while she was also among the largest warships ever built. The second of the Iowa-class, like her sister vessels, she was designed as a "fast battleship" that could travel with a carrier force and take the fight to the Japanese during World War II.

Launched on December 7, 1942 – a year after the Japanese sneak attack on Pearl Harbor – the New Jersey was commissioned in May 1943 and began her career as the flagship of the 5th Fleet under Adm. Raymond A. Spruance.

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/how-the-navy-sent-a-battleship-to-attack-vietnam/ar-AA1fF6fv?ocid=entnewsntp&cvid=6cc6bba893444a62b336caefd2208dcc&ei=11​

Big J is awesome!!!! need more hype on her

also, should have bombed the dams and flooded the North. game over

 

[WhiteBus]

White Bus, I am very into history, especially military history with an emphasis on WWII. Now that we are on the subject, Did you know that Camp Kilmer was the largest east coast embarkation camp during WWII for GI's going to and returing from Europe? How about the fact that the Belle Mead Army Depot was the largest supply depot for the European theater of Operations for supplies and ordnance? NJ played a huge roll in the success of WWII victory.

My Uncle's went through Camp Kilmer going over but not coming back. Back when I was
going to Rutgers 79-83 it still looked like a military base but was being used by the US Postal Service. Went through that area a few years ago. Didn't recognize it at all. So many new buildings.
As for the US New Jersey dry dock date is now pushed back to early 2024.

 

[ashokan]

Looking forward to an accurate history of the Vietnam War

Look it up, and the end of the war for US is generally given as April 30, 1975 - the fall of Saigon.
Yet the US part of the war war was ended with the Paris Peace Accords in 1973.
After years of negotiating, Nixon agreed to pull out US troops, clean-up mines etc and and N Vietnam sent US POWs back (people remember the familes meeting fathers at the airports).
North and South Vietnam were to be left independet of each other. -among other things

Then Nixon was Watergated and in Nov 74 the Dems got to 60 Senate seats amd added 49 House seats.
By spring 1975 North Vietnam figured they could safley violate Paris and move on S. Vietnam.
As S/N Vietnam went at it again, lame duck, President Ford said US citizens should not expect a return to Vietnam.

At Tulane in 1975 he said:

"Today, America can regain the sense of pride that existed before Vietnam. But it cannot be achieved by refighting a war THAT IS FINISHED as far as America is concerned. "

Ford stressed US war was over but somehow that speech and Saigon are used to mark the end of US Vietnam War when it was the end of Vietnam's civil war.

Add to all that the murder of SV's President Ngo Dinh Diem on 2 November 1963 and JFK a few weeks later. Obvioulsy there are a lot of shadows on the wall from this period

Paris Peace Accords - Wikisource, the free online library

en.wikisource.org