United States Ship
July 9th, 2009 | Ships | Posted by Phil Ewing
ABOARD THE AMPHIBIOUS ASSAULT SHIP MAKIN ISLAND — Around the Center of Excellence we’ve been saying “PCU Makin Island,” when we’ve needed to, as opposed to “USS,” a prefix that we thought Navy ships only got when they’d been formally commissioned. Makin Island hasn’t been — yet — but the ship has its wooden “USS” nameplate on the superstructure, as of just a few days ago. The Navy has decided the ship is “in commission, special,” as of June 29, said spokeswoman Ensign Lauryn Dempsey, so all the stationary, plates, ballcaps, Zippo lighters, napkins, t-shirts, patches and “welcome aboard” folders for visiting reporters are officially accurate.
As I’ve been standing on the flight deck typing, a shipyard crane has lifted the brow and set it on the deck — no one’s getting off now until Rio.