NEWPORT NEWS, Va. – A piece of the world’s first nuclear-powered aircraft carrier will serve another 25 years in the Navy.
The former Enterprise carrier (CVN 65) was decommissioned in 2017 after several years of inactivation work was completed at Newport News Shipbuilding.
Now one of the anchors from the Enterprise has been installed on another aircraft carrier, the USS George Washington.
That ship just reached the midway point of its midlife Refueling and Complex Overhaul (RCOH) at Newport News Shipbuilding.
During the overhaul process, shipbuilders inspecting the Washington found that one anchor on the carrier needed to be replaced. Enter the anchor from the Enterprise.
As the ship underwent the inactivation process at Newport News, where it was originally built, the anchors were preserved and stored.
The 32-ton starboard side anchor was built in 1957 and stayed on Enterprise throughout the ship’s naval service. It was refurbished and installed on the Washington.
This is not the first time an anchor from the Enterprise has seen continued life.
The port side anchor from Enterprise was installed on the USS Abraham Lincoln in 2014 as the Lincoln underwent RCOH in Newport News.
The Enterprise served the Navy for 51 years from 1961 to 2012. The name will live on with CVN-80, which will also be built by Newport News Shipbuilding.
