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General Characteristics

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Memorabilia

Cruise Books

Accidents aboard USS Wasp

Patch Gallery

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USS Wasp (LHD 1)

USS WASP is the lead ship of the Navy's first class of multi-purpose amphibious assault ships. This class consists of the biggest amphibious vessels ever built. USS WASP is the tenth ship in the Navy to bear the name.

General Characteristics:	Keel Laid: May 30, 1985
	Launched: August 4, 1987
	Commissioned: July 6, 1989
	Builder: Ingalls Shipbuilding , West Bank, Pascagoula, Miss.
	Propulsion system: two boilers, two geared turbines
	Propellers: two
	Aircraft elevators: two
	Length: 840 feet (256 meters)
	Flight Deck Width: 140 feet (42.6 meters)
	Beam: 106 feet (32,.3 meters)
	Draft: 26,5 feet (8.1 meters)
	Displacement: approx. 40,500 tons full load
	Speed: 23 knots
	Aircraft: 30+ (including V-22 Osprey, AH-1Z Viper and AH-1W Super Cobra, F-35B, CH-53K Sea Stallion, MH-60S Naval Hawk)
	Crew: Ship: 73 officers, 1,009 enlisted Marine Detachment: 1,894
	Armament: two Mk-29 NATO Sea Sparrow launchers, two 20mm Phalanx CIWS, eight Mk-33 .50 cal. machine guns, two Rolling Airframe Missile Systems
	Cost: approx. $822 million
	Homeport: Norfolk, Va.

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Crew List:

This section contains the names of sailors who served aboard USS WASP. It is no official listing but contains the names of sailors who submitted their information.

Click here to view the list.

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Click here to see which USS WASP memorabilia are currently for sale on ebay.

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USS WASP Cruise Books:

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Accidents aboard USS WASP:

Date	Where	Events
April 20, 1993	off southern Somalia	The WASP run aground when the ship scraped its keel and propeller on a charted reef approximately 3.5 miles from shore. There were no injuries to the crew and the ship continued on its assigned mission. Following the incident the ships's CO and the navigator were relieved.
March 29, 1995		USS WASP collided with the Fast Combat Support Ship USS SEATTLE (AOE 3).

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USS WASP Patch Gallery:

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USS WASP Image Gallery:

The photo below was taken by Karl-Heinz Ahles and shows USS WASP at Naval Base Norfolk, Va., on May 11, 1999.

The photos below were taken by me and show the USS WASP at Naval Base Norfolk, Va., on October 27 (first photo) and October 29, 2010.

The photos below were taken by me and show the USS WASP at Naval Base Norfolk, Va., on May 6, 2012.

The photos below were taken by Michael Jenning and show the USS WASP at BAE Systems Norfolk Ship Repair during a Drydocking Phased Maintenance Availability (DPMA). The photos were taken on May 8, 2014.

The photos below were taken by Michael Jenning and show the USS WASP at Naval Base Norfolk, Va., on October 23, 2014.

The photos below were taken by Michael Jenning and show the USS WASP undergoing a Drydocking Selected Restricted Availability (DSRA) at BAE Systems Norfolk Ship Repair on December 26, 2021. WASP entered the shipyard on February 17, 2021.

The photos below were taken by Michael Jenning and show the USS WASP at Naval Base Norfolk, Va., on September 6, 2022.

The photos below were taken by Michael Jenning on May 25, 2023, during an open ship event aboard USS WASP (LHD 1) as part of Fleet Week New York at New York City.



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