USS Saratoga (CV-60)

USS Saratoga (CV/CVA/CVB-60) was the second of four supercarriers built for the United States Navy in the 1950s. Saratoga was the sixth U.S. Navy ship, and the second aircraft carrier, to be named after the Battles of Saratoga in the American Revolutionary War.

Commissioned in 1956, she spent most of her career in the Mediterranean, but also participated during the Vietnam War, receiving one battle star for her service. One of her last operational duties was to participate in Operation Desert Storm.

Saratoga was decommissioned in 1994, and was stored at Naval Station Newport in Newport, Rhode Island. Multiple unsuccessful attempts were made to preserve her as a museum ship. The Navy paid ESCO Marine of Brownsville, Texas, one cent to take the ship for dismantling and recycling. On 15 September 2014, ex-Saratoga arrived in Brownsville, Texas, to be scrapped. Scrapping was completed by early 2019.

Construction and trials

thumb|left|Saratoga in the [[Brooklyn Navy Yard in May 1956, one month after her commissioning]]

She was ordered as a "Large Aircraft Carrier", hull classification symbol CVB-60, and her contract was awarded to the New York Naval Shipyard of Brooklyn, New York on 23 July 1952. She is the second of the four Forrestal-class carriers. She was reclassified as an "Attack Aircraft Carrier" (CVA-60) on 1 October 1952. Her keel was laid down on 16 December 1952. She was launched on 8 October 1955 sponsored by Mrs. Charles S. Thomas, and commissioned on 14 April 1956 with CAPT Robert Joseph Stroh in command. She was the first carrier in the US Navy to use high-pressure boilers.

Service history

1950s

thumb|left|Saratoga in Hampton Roads, Virginia, during the International Naval Review, 1957

thumb|left|Saratoga during NATO Operation Strikeback (1957)

For the next several months, Saratoga conducted various engineering, flight, steering, structural, and gunnery tests. On 18 August, she sailed for Guantanamo Bay and her shakedown cruise. On 19 December, she reentered the New York Naval Shipyard and remained there until 28 February 1957. Upon completion of yard work, she got underway on a refresher training cruise to the Caribbean before entering her home port, Naval Station Mayport in Mayport, Florida.

The carrier departed Mayport on 3 September 1957 for her maiden transatlantic voyage. Saratoga sailed into the Norwegian Sea and participated in Operation Strikeback, joint naval maneuvers of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) countries. She returned briefly to Mayport before entering the Norfolk Naval Shipyard for repairs. The results of an investigation were never published, but repairs to the freighter, amounting to about 2.5 million German marks, were paid for by the U.S. Navy.

While deployed with the Sixth Fleet on 23 January 1961, a serious fire broke out in Saratogas number two machinery space which took seven lives. The fire, believed caused by a ruptured fuel oil line, was brought under control by the crew, and the ship proceeded to Athens, Greece, where a survey of the damage could be made. The ship continued on its patrol mission with reduced steam generation capability, returning to the U.S. as scheduled to offload its air group before going to repair.

In January 1966 planes from the Saratoga rescued 5 survivors of Haitian Air Force DC-3 crash that killed four member of the United Nations mission to Haiti.

During the return voyage in early December 1967, Saratoga spent several days in a fierce Atlantic storm, which caused heavy damage to external catwalks on the flight deck, garbage chute, and boat sponsons. She arrived in Mayport on 6 December.

On 2 January 1968, Saratoga sailed for the Philadelphia Naval Shipyard, and an overhaul and modernization program which was to last 11 months. On 31 January 1969, she departed Philadelphia for Guantanamo, via Hampton Roads and Mayport, and extensive refresher training of the crew and air detachments.

1980s

thumb|Saratoga arrives in Philadelphia prior to her 28-month SLEP overhaul; the decommissioned is docked behind.

In March 1980, Saratoga embarked airwing CVW-3 and departed on their 16th Mediterranean deployment. Highlights of the deployment included major exercises with the battle group, and visits by the Chief of Naval Operations, ADM Thomas B. Hayward, and Master Chief Petty Officer of the Navy Thomas C. Crow. Then-commanding officer, CAPT James H. Flatley III, made naval aviation history on 21 June 1980 when he completed his 1,500th carrier arrested landing. To make the event special, Midshipman James H. Flatley IV, the Captain's son, rode in the back seat.

On 28 September 1980, only one month after her return from deployment, Saratoga departed Mayport and headed north to the Philadelphia Naval Shipyard where she underwent the most extensive industrial overhaul ever performed on any Navy ship. Saratoga was the first ship to go through the Service Life Extension Program (SLEP) overhaul that would last 28 months. She conducted sea trials on 16 October 1982, and left Philadelphia with much fanfare on 2 February 1983 with her new nickname — "Super Sara."

thumb|left|An [[Grumman F-14 Tomcat|F-14A of Fighter Squadron VF-74 catches the wire aboard Saratoga during the ship's 1985–86 Mediterranean cruise.]]

left|thumb|Saratoga underway in the Mediterranean in 1985. Three F-14 Tomcats are lined up on the catapults, ready to launch.

The Saratoga departed the Mayport Basin yet again for her 17th Mediterranean deployment on 2 April 1984.

Saratoga's 18th deployment was anything but ordinary. After departing Mayport in August 1985, Saratoga steamed toward the Mediterranean for what was scheduled to be a routine deployment. But on 10 October, she was called into action. An Italian luxury liner, , on a pleasure cruise departing from Alexandria, was hijacked by terrorists from the Palestinian Liberation Front (PLF). After tense negotiations and the killing of an American tourist, the hijackers went ashore at Port Said. Egyptian authorities made hasty arrangements for the terrorists to depart the country. They boarded an Egypt Air 737 jetliner at the Al Maza Air Base, northeast of Cairo. On orders from President Ronald Reagan, seven F-14 Tomcats from the VF-74 "Bedevilers" and the VF-103 "Sluggers" were launched from the Saratoga. Supporting the Tomcats continuously were VA-85 Grumman KA-6D air tankers and E-2C Hawkeye of VAW-125. Off the coast of Crete, the F-14s, without the use of running lights, eased up beside and behind the airliner. On command, the Tomcats turned on their lights and dipped their wings – an international signal for a forced landing. The E-2C Hawkeye radioed the airliner to follow the F-14s. Realizing they were in a "no-win" situation, the hijackers allowed the pilot to follow the Tomcats to Naval Air Station Sigonella, Italy. One hour and 15 minutes later, the aircraft landed and the hijackers were arrested by the Italians after a disagreement between American and Italian authorities. Seven hours after the fighter jets were scrambled, all Saratoga aircraft returned home without a shot fired.

thumb|Saratoga docked at Diego Garcia, the first aircraft carrier to dock pierside

On 5 December 1985 Saratoga became the first aircraft carrier to dock pierside on the island of Diego Garcia in the Indian Ocean.

thumb|The island of Saratoga

On 23 March 1986, while operating off coast of Libya, aircraft from the carriers Saratoga, and crossed what Libyan leader Muammar al-Gaddafi had called the "Line of Death." The very next day at noon, three U.S. Navy warships crossed the same 32° 30' navigational line. Two hours later, Libyan forces fired SA-5 Gammon surface-to-air missiles from the coastal town of Surt. The missiles missed their F-14 Tomcat targets and fell harmlessly into the water. Later that afternoon, U.S. aircraft turned back two Libyan Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-25 fighter planes over the disputed Gulf of Sidra. Soon after, aircraft from the three carriers fought back in defense. A heavily armed A-6E Intruder fired Rockeye cluster bombs and a Harpoon anti-ship cruise missile at a Libyan missile patrol boat operating on the "Line of Death." Later that night, two A-7E Corsair II jets attacked a key radar installation at Surt. At the conclusion, three Libyan patrol boats and a radar site were destroyed by Navy aircraft.

Friendly fire shoot-down incident

At 1550 EDT on 22 September 1987, an F-14 Tomcat, of VF-74 out of Naval Air Station Oceana, Virginia Beach, Virginia, operating from Saratoga, accidentally shot down a United States Air Force RF-4C Phantom II, of the 26th Tactical Reconnaissance Wing, out of Zweibrücken Air Base, West Germany, over the Mediterranean during a NATO exercise, "Display Determination 87". Both RF-4C crew ejected and were rescued by a helicopter from the Saratoga within 30 minutes, suffering numerous injuries. The Tomcat pilot, Timothy W. Dorsey, was duly disciplined and permanently removed from flying status, but was recommended for promotion to rear admiral 25 years later. Dorsey also served for years as USA Discounters' general counsel and vice president, and has been the Virginia-based company's public voice as it came under fire for its frequent targeting of service members in wage-garnishment lawsuits.

Following Saratogas 19th Mediterranean deployment in June 1987, she was overhauled once again at Norfolk Naval Shipyard, Portsmouth, Virginia, at a cost of $280 million.

1990s

Operation Desert Storm

Saratoga along with embarked airwing CVW-17, participated in Operation Desert Storm, primarily in the Red Sea. Before the outbreak of hostilities in Iraq, Saratoga suffered a loss of 21 crewmembers in a ferry boat accident off the coast of Haifa, Israel. During the war, Saratoga set what were at the time, several records. She completed six transits of the Suez Canal and completed approximately 11,000 aircraft launch and recovery cycles. Saddam Hussein claimed on Iraqi television that Saratoga had been sunk, along with several other Coalition vessels. On one occasion during the war, a missile, possibly a Scud, was launched in the general direction of Saratoga in the Red Sea, but it was either unguided, or launched on a hunch, as it was determined early in its flight path it would miss by more than .thumb|Saratoga returns from Desert Storm.

The ship launched many flights in support of operations, including that of Scott Speicher, correctly assumed to be the first American casualty of the war.

Another Saratoga aircraft shot down was an A-6E Intruder. Bombardier/Navigator LT Jeffrey Zaun was paraded before cameras by his Iraqi captors, but was eventually returned to American forces and was able to return to the Saratoga.

Saratoga-based US Navy SEALs conducted the first wartime boardings of merchant shipping in the Red Sea in support of Operation Desert Shield.

The TCG Muavenet incident

During the fall of 1992, the United States, Turkey, and several other NATO members participated in "Exercise Display Determination 1992", a combined forces naval exercise under the overall command of ADM Jeremy Michael Boorda of the United States Navy. The forces of participating nations were assigned to either of two multinational teams. VADM T. Joseph Lopez of the United States Navy led the "Brown Forces", which included Saratoga, with Commander Cruiser-Destroyer Group 8 embarked. The opposing "Green Forces", including the Turkish destroyer minelayer , former , were under the direct control of Admiral Kroon of the Netherlands.

During the "enhanced tactical" phase of the training exercises, the Brown Forces were to attempt an amphibious landing at Saros Bay in the Aegean Sea against the resistance offered by the Green Forces. ADM Boorda ordered the units comprising each force to actively seek and "destroy" each other. Both task force commanders had full authority to engage the enemy when and where they deemed appropriate and to use all warfare assets at their disposal to achieve victory. Needless to say, all confrontations were intended to be simulated attacks.

Decommissioning and fate

thumb|Ranks of enlisted crew members of Saratoga file off the ship for the last time at the end of the decommissioning ceremony.

Saratoga was decommissioned at the Naval Station, Mayport, Florida, on 20 August 1994, and stricken from the Naval Vessel Register the same day. She was towed to Philadelphia in May 1995, then, upon deactivation of the Philadelphia Navy Yard in August 1998, to Naval Station Newport in Newport, Rhode Island. There, she was first placed on donation hold, then her status was changed to "disposal as an experimental ship", and finally she was returned to donation hold on 1 January 2000. While a hulk at Newport, ex-Saratoga, like her sisters, was extensively stripped to support the active carrier fleet. There was an active effort to make her a museum ship in Quonset Point in North Kingstown, Rhode Island. In April 2010 Saratoga was removed from donation hold and scheduled to be disposed.thumb|Saratoga under tow off the coast of North Carolina en route to be scrapped at Brownsville, Texas, in August 2014|leftA major hurdle was competition with the National Football League, who had awarded the city the Jacksonville Jaguars franchise in November 1993. To secure the team as part of the agreement with the NFL, the city had to ensure a large financial commitment to fund re-building of the city's stadium at a cost of $130 million during 1994. This severely limited the city's available funding and support of the "Save Our Sara" effort to bring Saratoga back to her home port. The Jacksonville USS Saratoga Museum Foundation, Inc ceased operating in the summer of 1995.

On 8 May 2014, Naval Sea Systems Command announced that ESCO Marine, Brownsville, Texas, would scrap Saratoga for one cent. This was the minimum amount that could be paid for scrapping the ship. On 21 August 2014, Saratoga departed Naval Station Newport and made its way down Narragansett Bay to the Atlantic Ocean, en route to the Esco Marine ship recycling plant in Brownsville, Texas. The vessel arrived at the scrapyard on 16 September for final scrapping. Scrapping was completed by 31 March 2019.

Both of Saratoga<nowiki/>'s anchors were reused on the 1998-commissioned USS Harry S. Truman.

Notable naval officers

ADM Jeremy Michael Boorda, ship was his flagship 1987; 25th Chief of Naval Operations
VADM David Eugene Frost, The first Executive Officer, and interim Commanding Officer of United States Navy Strike Fighter Tactics Instructor program(The Navy's "Topgun" School). (CO of USS Saratoga August 1986 – March 1988; During that time, USS Saratoga won two consecutive Battle E's).
CAPT Scott Speicher, Naval Aviator.
VADM Joseph Scott Mobley (COMNAVAIRLANT), the U.S. military's last Vietnam prisoner of war (Shot Down: 24 June 1968/Released: 14 March 1973) Retired from active duty on 12 April 2001. (CO of USS Saratoga during Operation Desert Shield/Desert Storm).
CAPT Frederick T. Moore Jr., commanding officer, November 1962 - September 1963

Notes

References

External links

USS Saratoga association
Naval Historical Center – USS Saratoga (CVA-60, later CV-60), 1956–
Dictionary of American Fighting Ships – Saratoga
Saratoga Museum Foundation Home Page