By Troy Turner
MOBILE, ALABAMA — The world’s first nuclear aircraft carrier, the former USS Enterprise (CVN-65) with a distinguished record of military service dating back to the Cuban Missile Crisis and NASA’s Project Mercury program, will spend its final days in Mobile.
The U.S. Navy and Department of Defense announced on Friday that NorthStar Maritime Dismantlement Services LLC, based in Vernon, Vermont, is awarded a nearly $537 million contract for its plan to dismantle the historic ship in Mobile.
The contract calls for the dismantling, recycling and disposal of what the DOD now refers to as the Ex-Enterprise.
“Under this contract CVN 65 will be dismantled in its entirety, and all resulting materials will be properly recycled or disposed of. Specifically, hazardous materials, including low-level radioactive waste, will be packaged and safely transported for disposal at authorized licensed sites,” the DOD announced.
Work will be performed in Mobile and is expected to be completed by November 2029.
The Naval Sea Systems Command, Washington, D.C., is the contracting agency.
A Mobile-centered partnership
NorthStar in November 2024 announced its proposal in partnership with a Mobile company to dismantle the retired ship, a plan that met resistance from the local Chamber of Commerce, which expressed concerns about having the remnants of nuclear material in Mobile Bay.
“We don’t think it’s good for commerce for it to be that close to our port, and we don’t think it’s good for it to still be in the water when they’re doing it, because if they have a mishap, it could shut down the harbor for an unknown period of time,” said Chamber President and CEO Bradley Byrne told local media.
Navy and federal nuclear officials have tried to assure local leaders that the process involved is proven safe and secure.
The NorthStar announcement last November said NorthStar Maritime Dismantlement Services, LLC, a subsidiary of NorthStar Group Services, Inc. (NorthStar) and Modern American Recycling and Radiological Services, LLC (MARRS), a subsidiary of Modern American Recycling Services (MARS) have formed a team to dismantle and dispose of the decommissioned Ex-Enterprise.
“This team matches NorthStar’s extensive experience decommissioning U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC)-regulated facilities with the MARS’ ship recycling and decommissioning specialists working together at the accessible and spacious MARS Deepwater facility in Mobile,” the company stated.
The statement included mention of NorthStar’s history of having successfully worked on previous nuclear decommissioning projects.
“Working with MARS, the most experienced maritime recycler in the U.S., competitively positions NorthStar for the opportunity to dismantle the ex-Enterprise,” said Scott E. State, P.E., CEO of NorthStar. “We look forward to applying our well-honed commercial industry practices to this first-of-a-kind project and look forward to a long relationship with MARS and the Mobile community.”
Navy history with CVN-65
The following is the Navy’s historic account of the former Enterprise:
Commissioned at Newport News, Virginia, on Nov. 25, 1961, USS Enterprise (CVN-65) was the world’s first nuclear aircraft carrier.
Ordered to assist the Project Mercury Program in February 1962, she tracked and measured the flight of the first American orbital spaceflight, Friendship 7.
During the Cuban Missile Crisis that October, Enterprise participated in the blockade of Cuba.
Along with USS Bainbridge (DLGN-25) and USS Long Beach (CGN-9), she was part of the nuclear-task force, Operation Sea Orbit, from May to October 1964, circumnavigating the globe without refueling. Following this cruise, Enterprise was redesignated CVAN-65 and was deployed in November 1965 for service in the Vietnam War, becoming the first nuclear-powered ship to engage in combat by utilizing her aircraft against the Viet Cong.
On Jan. 14, 1969, an accident involving an F-4 “Phantom” on her flight deck resulted on 27 Sailors killed and 314 injured.
After repairs, Enterprise continued to serve off Vietnam until 1973 and assisted in Operation Frequent Wind, the evacuation of Saigon, in April 1975.
She was redesignated back to CVN-65 the following year. Deployed mainly in the Pacific and Indian oceans during the late 1970s and early 1980s, she entered the Mediterranean in April 1986 to assist in Operation El Dorado Canyon, the bombing of Libya.
Two years later, she was assigned to Operation Earnest Will, escorting merchant Kuwaiti tankers in the Persian Gulf.
Following a lengthy overhaul, Enterprise returned to sea duty in September 1994 and enforced no-fly zones in Operation Joint Endeavor off Bosnia and Operation Southern Watch over Iraq.
In 1998, she successfully attacked Iraqi targets in Operation Desert Fox.
To assist in the war against terrorism, she participated, beginning in 2001, in Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring Freedom and underwent further refurbishments and deployments until deactived in 2012.
Enterprise was struck from the Naval Vessel Register on Feb. 3, 2017, and is currently awaiting nuclear recycling.
Troy Turner is the editor and senior consultant for AlaDefense.com. He can be contacted at [email protected]. His bio can be found here.
