The seventh USS ''Ranger'' (CV/CVA-61) was the third of four
supercarrier
An aircraft carrier is a warship that serves as a seagoing airbase, equipped with a full-length flight deck and hangar facilities for supporting, arming, deploying and recovering shipborne aircraft. Typically it is the capital ship of a ...
s built for the
United States Navy
The United States Navy (USN) is the naval warfare, maritime military branch, service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is the world's most powerful navy with the largest Displacement (ship), displacement, at 4.5 millio ...
in the 1950s. Although all four ships of the class were completed with
angled decks, ''Ranger'' had the distinction of being the first U.S. carrier built from the beginning as an angled-deck ship.
Commissioned in 1957, she served extensively in the Pacific, especially the
Vietnam War
The Vietnam War (1 November 1955 – 30 April 1975) was an armed conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia fought between North Vietnam (Democratic Republic of Vietnam) and South Vietnam (Republic of Vietnam) and their allies. North Vietnam w ...
, for which she earned 13 battle stars. Near the end of her career, she also served in the Indian Ocean and Persian Gulf.
''Ranger'' was decommissioned in 1993, and was stored at
Bremerton, Washington
Bremerton is a city in Kitsap County, Washington, Kitsap County, Washington (state), Washington, United States. The population was 43,505 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census and an estimated 44,122 in 2021, making it the largest city ...
, until March 2015. She was then moved to Brownsville for scrapping, which was completed in November 2017.
Construction and trials
''Ranger'' was the first American
aircraft carrier
An aircraft carrier is a warship that serves as a seagoing airbase, equipped with a full-length flight deck and hangar facilities for supporting, arming, deploying and recovering carrier-based aircraft, shipborne aircraft. Typically it is the ...
to be laid down as an angled-deck ship (her elder sisters ''Forrestal'' and ''Saratoga'' had been laid down as axial-deck ships and were converted for an angled deck while under construction). She was laid down 2 August 1954 by
Newport News Shipbuilding
Newport News Shipbuilding (NNS), a division of Huntington Ingalls Industries, is the sole designer, builder, and refueler of aircraft carriers and one of two providers of submarines for the United States Navy. Founded as the Chesapeake Dry Dock ...
and Drydock Co.,
Newport News, Virginia
Newport News () is an Independent city (United States), independent city in southeastern Virginia, United States. At the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 186,247. Located in the Hampton Roads region, it is the List of c ...
in Shipway 10. Her partially completed hull was floated and placed in Shipway 11 four months later for final completion. ''Ranger'' was launched 29 September 1956, sponsored by Mrs. Arthur Radford (wife of Admiral
Arthur W. Radford
Arthur William Radford (27 February 1896 – 17 August 1973) was an admiral and naval aviator of the United States Navy. In over 40 years of military service, Radford held a variety of positions including the vice chief of Naval Operations ...
,
Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff
The chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (CJCS) is the presiding officer of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS). The chairman is the highest-ranking and most senior military officer in the United States Armed Forces Chairman: appointment; gra ...
) and commissioned at the
Norfolk Naval Shipyard
The Norfolk Naval Shipyard, often called the Norfolk Navy Yard and abbreviated as NNSY, is a U.S. Navy facility in Portsmouth, Virginia, for building, remodeling and repairing the Navy's ships. It is the oldest and largest industrial facility ...
10 August 1957,
Captain
Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader or highest rank officer of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police depa ...
Charles T. Booth II in command.
''Ranger'' joined the
U.S. Atlantic Fleet
The United States Fleet Forces Command (USFFC) is a service component command of the United States Navy that provides naval forces to a wide variety of U.S. forces. The naval resources may be allocated to Combatant Commanders such as United Sta ...
on 3 October 1957. Just prior to sailing on 4 October for
Guantánamo Bay, Cuba
Guantánamo (, , ) is a municipality and city in southeast Cuba and capital of Guantánamo Province.
Guantánamo is served by the Caimanera port near the site of a U.S. naval base. The area produces sugarcane and cotton wool. These are traditio ...
, for shakedown, she received the men and planes of
Attack Squadron 85. She conducted air operations, individual ship exercises, and final acceptance trials along the eastern seaboard and in the Caribbean Sea until 20 June 1958. Noted artist
Jack Coggins
Jack Banham Coggins (July 10, 1911 – January 30, 2006) was an artist, author, and illustrator. He is known in the United States for his oil paintings, which focused predominantly on marine subjects. He is also known for his books on space tra ...
was commissioned by the
United States Naval Institute
The United States Naval Institute (USNI) is a private non-profit military association that offers independent, nonpartisan forums for debate of national security issues. In addition to publishing magazines and books, the Naval Institute holds s ...
to paint the new aircraft carrier; his artwork appeared on the cover of their Proceedings Magazine of July 1958. She then departed
Norfolk, Virginia
Norfolk ( ) is an independent city (United States), independent city in the U.S. state of Virginia. It had a population of 238,005 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the List of cities in Virginia, third-most populous city ...
, with 200 Naval Reserve officer candidates for a two-month cruise that took the carrier around
Cape Horn
Cape Horn (, ) is the southernmost headland of the Tierra del Fuego archipelago of southern Chile, and is located on the small Hornos Island. Although not the most southerly point of South America (which is Águila Islet), Cape Horn marks the nor ...
. She arrived at her new homeport,
Naval Air Station Alameda
Naval Air Station Alameda (NAS Alameda) was a United States Navy Naval Air Station mostly in Alameda, California, with a slight portion of it within San Francisco proper, on San Francisco Bay.
NAS Alameda had two runways: 13–31 measuring and ...
,
Alameda, California
Alameda ( ; ; Spanish for "Avenue (landscape), tree-lined path") is a city in Alameda County, California, United States, located in the East Bay (San Francisco Bay Area), East Bay region of the Bay Area. The city is built on an informal archipe ...
, on 20 August and joined the
Pacific Fleet.
Service
The carrier spent the remainder of 1958 in pilot qualification training for
Air Group 14 and fleet exercises along the California coast. Departing 3 January 1959 for final training in Hawaiian waters until 17 February, she next sailed as the flagship of
Rear Admiral
Rear admiral is a flag officer rank used by English-speaking navies. In most European navies, the equivalent rank is called counter admiral.
Rear admiral is usually immediately senior to commodore and immediately below vice admiral. It is ...
Henry H. Caldwell, Commander,
Carrier Division Two, to join the
Seventh Fleet
The Seventh Fleet is a numbered fleet of the United States Navy. It is headquartered at U.S. Fleet Activities Yokosuka, in Yokosuka, Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan. It is part of the United States Pacific Fleet. At present, it is the largest of th ...
. Air operations off
Okinawa
most commonly refers to:
* Okinawa Prefecture, Japan's southernmost prefecture
* Okinawa Island, the largest island of Okinawa Prefecture
* Okinawa Islands, an island group including Okinawa itself
* Okinawa (city), the second largest city in th ...
were followed by maneuvers with
SEATO
The Southeast Asia Treaty Organization (SEATO) was an international organization for collective defense in Southeast Asia created by the Southeast Asia Collective Defense Treaty signed in September 1954 in Manila, Philippines. The formal insti ...
naval units out of
Subic Bay
Subic Bay is a bay on the west coast of the island of Luzon in the Philippines, about northwest of Manila Bay. An extension of the South China Sea, its shores were formerly the site of a major United States Navy facility, U.S. Naval Base Subi ...
,
Philippines
The Philippines, officially the Republic of the Philippines, is an Archipelagic state, archipelagic country in Southeast Asia. Located in the western Pacific Ocean, it consists of List of islands of the Philippines, 7,641 islands, with a tot ...
. A special weapons warfare exercise and a patrol along the southern seaboard of Japan followed. During this first
WestPac
Westpac Banking Corporation, also known as Westpac, is an Australian multinational banking and financial services company headquartered at Westpac Place in Sydney.
Established in 1817 as the Bank of New South Wales, it acquired the Commerc ...
deployment, ''Ranger'' launched more than 7,000 sorties in support of 7th Fleet operations. She returned to
San Francisco Bay
San Francisco Bay (Chochenyo language, Chochenyo: 'ommu) is a large tidal estuary in the United States, U.S. state of California, and gives its name to the San Francisco Bay Area. It is dominated by the cities of San Francisco, California, San ...
27 July. During the next 6 months, ''Ranger'' was kept in a high state of readiness through participation in exercises and coastal fleet operations.
With Carrier Air Group 9 embarked, she departed Alameda on 6 February 1960 for a second WestPac deployment and returned to Alameda 30 August. From 11 August 1961 through 8 March 1962, ''Ranger'' deployed to the Far East a third time.
The next seven months were filled with intensive training along the western seaboard in preparation for operations in Southeast Asia. ''Ranger'' departed Alameda on 9 November for brief operations off Hawaii, thence proceeded, via Okinawa, to the Philippines. She steamed to the
South China Sea
The South China Sea is a marginal sea of the Western Pacific Ocean. It is bounded in the north by South China, in the west by the Indochinese Peninsula, in the east by the islands of Taiwan island, Taiwan and northwestern Philippines (mainly Luz ...
1 May 1963 to support possible
Laotian operations. When the political situation in Laos relaxed 4 May, she resumed her operations schedule with the 7th Fleet. Arriving at Alameda from the Far East 14 June 1963, she underwent overhaul in the
San Francisco Naval Shipyard
The Hunters Point Naval Shipyard was a United States Navy shipyard in San Francisco, California, located on of waterfront at Hunters Point in the southeast corner of the city.
Originally, Hunters Point was a commercial shipyard established i ...
7 August 1963 through 10 February 1964. Refresher training out of Alameda commenced 25 March, interrupted by an operational cruise to Hawaii from 19 June to 10 July.
In May 1964, ''Ranger'' was deployed near French Polynesia in the Pacific Ocean to monitor the
French nuclear tests on
Moruroa
Moruroa (Mururoa, Mururura), also historically known as Aopuni, is an atoll which forms part of the Tuamotu Archipelago in French Polynesia in the southern Pacific Ocean. It is located about southeast of Tahiti. Administratively Moruroa Atoll i ...
, a task made possible by launching and recovering a
Lockheed U-2
The Lockheed U-2, nicknamed the "''Dragon Lady''", is an American single-engine, high–altitude reconnaissance aircraft operated by the United States Air Force (USAF) and the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) since the 1950s. Designed for all- ...
from its flight deck. Work on modifying the U-2 for carrier landing and take-off started in late 1963, and one accident occurred during the carrier landing operation when the aircraft piloted by test pilot Bob Schumacher crashed.
Vietnam War service
''Ranger'' again sailed for the Far East on 6 August 1964. This deployment came on the heels of the
Gulf of Tonkin incident.
''Ranger'' made only an eight-hour stop in
Pearl Harbor
Pearl Harbor is an American lagoon harbor on the island of Oahu, Hawaii, west of Honolulu. It was often visited by the naval fleet of the United States, before it was acquired from the Hawaiian Kingdom by the U.S. with the signing of the Reci ...
on 10 August, then hurried on to Subic Bay, then to
Yokosuka
is a city in Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan.
, the city has a population of 373,797, and a population density of . The total area is . Yokosuka is the 11th-most populous city in the Greater Tokyo Area, and the 12th in the Kantō region. The city i ...
, Japan. In the latter port on 17 October 1964, she became the
flagship
A flagship is a vessel used by the commanding officer of a group of navy, naval ships, characteristically a flag officer entitled by custom to fly a distinguishing flag. Used more loosely, it is the lead ship in a fleet of vessels, typically ...
of Rear Admiral Miller, who commanded Fast Carrier
Task Force 77. In the following months, she helped the 7th Fleet continue its role of steady watchfulness to keep sea lanes open and stop Communist infiltration by sea.
General
William Westmoreland
William Childs Westmoreland (26 March 1914 – 18 July 2005) was a United States Army general, most notably the commander of United States forces during the Vietnam War from 1964 to 1968.
He served as Chief of Staff of the United States Army f ...
, commanding
Military Assistance Command, Vietnam
The U.S. Military Assistance Command, Vietnam (MACV) was a joint-service command of the United States Department of Defense, composed of forces from the United States Army, United States Navy, and United States Air Force, as well as their respecti ...
, visited ''Ranger'' on 9 March 1965 to confer with Rear Admiral Miller. ''Ranger'' continued air strikes on enemy targets inland until 13 April when a fuel line broke, ignited and engulfed her No. 1 main machinery room in flames. The fire was extinguished in little over an hour. There was one fatality. She put into Subic Bay 15 April and sailed on the 20th for Alameda, arriving home on 6 May. She entered the San Francisco Naval Shipyard 13 May and remained there under overhaul until 30 September 1965.
Following refresher training, ''Ranger'' departed Alameda on 10 December 1965 to rejoin the 7th Fleet. She and her embarked
Carrier Air Wing 14 received the
Navy Unit Commendation
The Navy Unit Commendation (NUC) is a United States Navy and United States Coast Guard unit award that was established by order of the Secretary of the Navy James Forrestal on 18 December 1944.
History
Navy
A navy, naval force, military m ...
for exceptionally meritorious service during combat operations in Southeast Asia from 10 January to 6 August 1966.
''Ranger'' departed the
Gulf of Tonkin
The Gulf of Tonkin is a gulf at the northwestern portion of the South China Sea, located off the coasts of Tonkin ( northern Vietnam) and South China. It has a total surface area of . It is defined in the west and northwest by the northern co ...
on 6 August for Subic Bay, then steamed via Yokosuka for Alameda, arriving on the 25th. She stood out of San Francisco Bay 28 September and entered
Puget Sound Naval Shipyard
Puget Sound Naval Shipyard, officially Puget Sound Naval Shipyard and Intermediate Maintenance Facility (PSNS & IMF), is a United States Navy shipyard covering 179 acres (0.7 km2) on Puget Sound at Bremerton, Washington in uninterrupted ...
two days later for overhaul. The carrier departed Puget Sound on 30 May 1967 for training out of San Diego and Alameda. On 21 July 1967, she logged her 88,000th carrier landing.
From June until November, ''Ranger'' underwent a long and intensive period of training designed to make her fully combat ready. Attack Carrier Air Wing 2 (CVW-2) embarked on 15 September 1967, with the new
A-7 Corsair II
The LTV A-7 Corsair II is an American carrier-capable subsonic light attack aircraft designed and manufactured by Ling-Temco-Vought (LTV).
The A-7 was developed during the early 1960s as replacement for the Douglas A-4 Skyhawk. Its design wa ...
jet attack plane and the
UH-2C Seasprite rescue helicopter, making ''Ranger'' the first carrier to deploy with these powerful new aircraft. From carrier refresher training for CVW-2, ''Ranger'' proceeded to fleet exercise "
Moon Festival
The Mid-Autumn Festival (for other names, see § Etymology) is a harvest festival celebrated in Chinese culture. It is held on the 15th day of the 8th month of the Chinese lunisolar calendar with a full moon at night, corresponding to mid- ...
". From 9 to 16 October, the carrier and her air wing participated in every aspect of a major fleet combat operation.
''Ranger'' departed Alameda on 4 November 1967 for WestPac. Arriving at Yokosuka on 21 November, she relieved and sailed for the Philippines on the 24th. After arriving at Subic Bay on 29 November, she made final preparations for combat operations in the Gulf of Tonkin. The Commander,
Carrier Division 3, embarked on 30 November as Commander, TG 77.7, and ''Ranger'' departed Subic Bay on 1 December for
Yankee Station
Yankee Station (officially Point Yankee) was a fixed coordinate off the coast of Vietnam where U.S. Navy aircraft carriers and support ships operated in open waters over a nine-year period during the Vietnam War. The location was used primari ...
.
Arriving on station on 3 December 1967, ''Ranger'' commenced another period of sustained combat operations against North Vietnam. During the next five months, her planes hit a wide variety of targets, including ferries, bridges, airfields, and military installations. Truck parks, rail facilities, antiaircraft guns, and SAM sites were also treated to doses of Air Wing 2's firepower.
Bob Hope's ''Christmas Show'' came to ''Ranger'' in the Gulf of Tonkin on 21 December. Another welcome break in the intense pace of operations came with a call at Yokosuka during the first week of April. Returning to Yankee Station on 11 April, ''Ranger'' again struck objectives in North Vietnam.
At the end of January 1968, was seized by North Korea. ''Ranger'' turned north and proceeded at full speed from the tropical waters off Vietnam to the frigid waters off North Korea as part of
Operation Formation Star. The ship had been on the combat line in Vietnam for one month and was due to for rest and recreation. At the conclusion of the North Korea deployment, the ship had been at sea for 65 days. The carrier stopped at the small Japanese port of
Sasebo
is a core city located in Nagasaki Prefecture, Japan. It is the second-largest city in Nagasaki Prefecture, after its capital, Nagasaki. , the city had an estimated population of 230,873 in 102,670 households, and a population density of 540 per ...
for several days, then proceeded back to combat operations.
After five months of intensive operations, ''Ranger'' called at Hong Kong on 5 May 1968 and then steamed for home. There followed a shipyard availability at Puget Sound that ended with ''Ranger''s departure 29 July for San Francisco. Three months of leave, upkeep and training culminated in another WestPac deployment 26 October 1968 through 17 May 1969.

She departed Alameda on yet another WestPac deployment in October 1969 as the flagship for Rear Admiral J.C. Donaldson, Commander, Carrier Division Three, and Captain J.P. Moorer as commanding officer, and remained so employed until 18 May 1970. During this time, the ship spent at least two extended periods on Yankee Station, the longest being 45 days, due to mechanical problems with the carrier that was to relieve her. A pleasant break in the lives of ''Ranger''s crew came with the arrival of the Bob Hope show on 24 December 1969. Upon leaving Yankee after one tour and on the way to Sasebo, ''Ranger'' was ordered to stand off the coast of Korea for three days due to North Korea forcing down a US C-130 and holding the crew. Initially, ''Ranger'' was to leave the line on Yankee Station for a week of R&R in Subic Bay while offloading supplies, then to Japan and on to Australia and home. A day before ''Ranger'' was to leave the line she was ordered to hold on station and fly the first sorties on Cambodia. Finally leaving Yankee Station, ''Ranger'' made a fast three-day offload in Subic Bay and a two-day port call in Sasebo and back to Alameda, arriving 1 June. ''Ranger'' spent the rest of the summer engaged in operations off the west coast, departing for her sixth WestPac cruise in late October 1970. On 10 March 1971, ''Ranger'', along with , set a record of 233 strike sorties for one day in action against North Vietnam.
During April, the three carriers assigned to Task Force 77 – ''Ranger'', ''Kitty Hawk'', and – provided a constant two-carrier posture on Yankee Station. Hours of employment remained unchanged, with one carrier on daylight hours and one on the noon to midnight schedule. Strike emphasis was placed on the interdiction of major Laotian entry corridors to South Vietnam. She returned to Alameda 7 June 1971, and remained in port for the rest of 1971 and the first five months of 1972 undergoing regular overhaul.
On 27 May 1972, she returned to West Coast operation until 16 November, when she embarked upon her seventh WestPac deployment. This had been delayed four months when one of the engines was disabled after Navy fireman E-3 Patrick Chenoweth was accused of dropping a heavy paint scraper into a main reduction gear, one of around two dozen acts of sabotage ''Ranger'' suffered between 7 June 1972 and 16 October 1972. Chenoweth was charged with "sabotage in time of war", and faced 30 years imprisonment, but was acquitted by a general court-martial.
On 18 December 1972, the
Linebacker II
Operation Linebacker II, sometimes referred to as the Christmas bombings and, in Vietnam, Dien Bien Phu in the air, was a strategic bombing campaign conducted by the United States against targets in North Vietnam from 18 December to 29 December ...
campaign was initiated when negotiations in the
Paris peace talks
The Paris Peace Accords (), officially the Agreement on Ending the War and Restoring Peace in Viet Nam (), was a peace agreement signed on January 27, 1973, to establish peace in Vietnam and end the Vietnam War. It took effect at 8:00 the follow ...
stalemated. Participating carriers were ''Ranger'', , , , and . In an intensified version of
Operation Linebacker
Operation Linebacker was the codename of a U.S. Seventh Air Force and U.S. Navy Task Force 77 air interdiction campaign conducted against North Vietnam from 9 May to 23 October 1972, during the Vietnam War.
Its purpose was to halt or slow th ...
, bombing of North Vietnam above the 20th parallel and reseeding of the
mine fields
A land mine, or landmine, is an explosive weapon often concealed under or camouflaged on the ground, and designed to destroy or disable enemy targets as they pass over or near it. Land mines are divided into two types: anti-tank mines, whic ...
were resumed, and concentrated strikes were carried out against surface-to-air missile and antiaircraft artillery sites, enemy army barracks, petroleum storage areas,
Haiphong
Haiphong or Hai Phong (, ) is the third-largest city in Vietnam and is the principal port city of the Red River Delta. The municipality has an area of , consisting of 8 urban districts, 6 rural districts and 1 municipal city (sub-city). Two o ...
naval and shipyard areas, and railroad and truck stations. Navy tactical air attack sorties were centered in the coastal areas around
Hanoi
Hanoi ( ; ; ) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Vietnam, second-most populous city of Vietnam. The name "Hanoi" translates to "inside the river" (Hanoi is bordered by the Red River (Asia), Red and Black River (Asia), Black Riv ...
and Haiphong, with 505 Navy sorties were carried out in this area. These operations ended on 29 December when the North Vietnamese returned to the peace table; on 27 January 1973, the Vietnam cease-fire came into effect, and ''Oriskany'', ''America'', ''Enterprise'', and ''Ranger'', on Yankee Station, cancelled all combat sorties.
In July 1972, while ''Ranger'' was tied up at
Alameda Naval Air Station
Naval Air Station Alameda (NAS Alameda) was a United States Navy Naval Air Station mostly in Alameda, California, with a slight portion of it within San Francisco proper, on San Francisco Bay.
NAS Alameda had two runways: 13–31 measuring and ...
, the ship was damaged when someone apparently tossed a paint scrapers and two bolts into the ship's main reduction gear. This resulted in almost a million dollars in damages and delayed the ship's redeployment by more than three months. A court martial found the suspect not guilty of "sabotage in time of war."
Post-war service in the 1970s
''Ranger'' returned to Alameda in August 1973. She was ordered immediately to refit and repair at Long Beach Naval Base where she was prepared for her next WESPAC Cruise over the next ninety days. Her air wing was lifted aboard by giant crane in Long Beach. She spent two weeks shaking down active duty and Reserve pilots. She returned to Alameda. There were two more two-week shake down cruises between January and April 1974. On 7 May 1974 she deployed again to the western Pacific. During this cruise, ''Ranger'' was again deployed to Yankee Station to participate in operations significant to the withdrawal of forces involved there. She returned to homeport on 18 October. On 28 May 1976, while on deployment, helicopter crews from HS-4 aboard ''Ranger'', detachments from HC-3 on , and , and helicopters from
Naval Air Station Cubi Point
U.S. Naval Air Station Cubi Point was a United States Navy aerial facility located at the edge of Naval Base Subic Bay and abutting the Bataan Peninsula in the Philippines.
When the base closed, the air station became Subic Bay International ...
, Republic of the Philippines, assisted in Philippine disaster relief efforts in the flood ravaged areas of central
Luzon
Luzon ( , ) is the largest and most populous List of islands in the Philippines, island in the Philippines. Located in the northern portion of the List of islands of the Philippines, Philippine archipelago, it is the economic and political ce ...
. Over 1,900 people were evacuated; more than of relief supplies and of fuel were provided by Navy and Air Force helicopters.
On 12 July 1976, ''Ranger'' and her escort ships of Task Force 77.7 entered the Indian Ocean and were assigned to operate off the coast of
Kenya
Kenya, officially the Republic of Kenya, is a country located in East Africa. With an estimated population of more than 52.4 million as of mid-2024, Kenya is the 27th-most-populous country in the world and the 7th most populous in Africa. ...
in response to a threat of
military action in Kenya by Ugandan forces in the wake of
the rescue of Israeli hostages held at Entebbe Airport in Uganda several days before.
In February 1977, ''Ranger'' departed
Naval Air Station North Island
Naval Air Station North Island or NAS North Island , at the north end of the Coronado peninsula on San Diego Bay in San Diego, California, is part of the largest aerospace-industrial complex in the United States Navy – Naval Base Coronado (N ...
for the
Puget Sound Naval Shipyard
Puget Sound Naval Shipyard, officially Puget Sound Naval Shipyard and Intermediate Maintenance Facility (PSNS & IMF), is a United States Navy shipyard covering 179 acres (0.7 km2) on Puget Sound at Bremerton, Washington in uninterrupted ...
, Bremerton, Washington, for major overhaul. While in overhaul, she received significant technological upgrades to her command information systems and flight deck gear, and was fitted with
Sea Sparrow
The RIM-7 Sea Sparrow is a U.S. ship-borne short-range anti-aircraft and anti-missile weapon system, primarily intended for defense against anti-ship missiles. The system was developed in the early 1960s from the AIM-7 Sparrow air-to-air missile ...
missile defense systems. Additionally, the main machinery spaces were refitted with more reliable 'General Regulator' forced-balance automatic boiler and combustion-control systems. In March 1978, the overhaul was completed and she began several months of shakedown cruises and sea trials for recertifications.
On 21 February 1979, ''Ranger'' deployed for her 14th WestPac cruise, tentatively scheduled to cross the Indian Ocean to present a show of force during the
strife between North and South Yemen, a mission she would not complete. On 5 April 1979, she collided with the Liberian-flagged tanker MV ''Fortune'' just southeast of Singapore while entering the
Straits of Malacca
The Strait of Malacca is a narrow stretch of water, long and from wide, between the Malay Peninsula to the northeast and the Indonesian island of Sumatra to the southwest, connecting the Andaman Sea (Indian Ocean) and the South China Sea (Pa ...
. While the large oil tanker was severely damaged, ''Ranger'' endured a significant gash in her bow, rendering two fuel tanks unusable. ''Ranger'' turned back to Subic Bay, for temporary repairs and then to Yokosuka, for full repair. The collision resulted in 10,000 tons of crude oil spilled in the South China Sea. MV ''Fortune'' was hauling 100,000 tons of light crude from Kuwait to Japan.
1980s
In September 1980, ''Ranger'' departed her homeport of San Diego for the 15th WestPac cruise and again crossed into the Indian Ocean via the
Straits of Malacca
The Strait of Malacca is a narrow stretch of water, long and from wide, between the Malay Peninsula to the northeast and the Indonesian island of Sumatra to the southwest, connecting the Andaman Sea (Indian Ocean) and the South China Sea (Pa ...
, this time without incident. ''Ranger'' proceeded to
GONZO Station
Gonzo Station was a U.S. Navy acronym for "''Gulf of Oman Naval Zone of Operations''" or "''Gulf of Oman Northern Zone''.""Decision at Sea: Five Naval Battles that Shaped American History," Symonds, Craig L., Oxford Univ Press; New York, NY; c200 ...
to continue the US Navy's show of force in the region during
Iran hostage crisis
The Iran hostage crisis () began on November 4, 1979, when 66 Americans, including diplomats and other civilian personnel, were taken hostage at the Embassy of the United States in Tehran, with 52 of them being held until January 20, 1981. Th ...
, which at that point was in its tenth month. ''Ranger'' remained on-station for over 120 days, during which time the hostages were released on 20 January 1981, the 444th day of the crisis. ''Ranger'' was awarded the
Navy Expeditionary Medal
The Navy Expeditionary Medal is a military award of the United States Navy which was established in August 1936.
Award criteria
The General Orders of the Department of the Navy which established the medal states, "The medal will be awarded to t ...
, for both the ship and her company. She returned to homeport on 5 May 1981.
On 20 March 1981, under the command of CAPT
Dan Pedersen
Dan Pedersen is a retired United States Navy Captain, credited as being the leading force behind the creation of the United States Navy Fighter Weapons School program known as “TOPGUN”.
Military career
Pedersen joined the Navy in 1953 as an ...
, ''Ranger'' rescued 138
Vietnamese boat people
Vietnamese boat people () were refugees who fled Vietnam by boat and ship following the end of the Vietnam War in 1975. This migration and humanitarian crisis was at its highest in the late 1970s and early 1980s, but continued well into the earl ...
from the South China Sea and brought them to the United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR) in Manila, Philippines. In the same year, following the refugee rescue in 1981, Pedersen was given a nonpunitive letter of censure by Vice Adm.
Robert F. Schoultz, commander of the Naval Air Force, United States Pacific Fleet, (COMNAVAIRPAC), after a three-week investigation into the 14 April 1981 death of Airman Paul Trerice, 20 years old, of Algonac, Michigan. Trerice had died after being on a bread-and-water diet for three days, then taking part in punitive exercises in the correctional custody unit. According to ''The Washington Post'', "Trerice became abusive in the Ranger's correctional custody unit and had to be subdued in a struggle shortly before his death." The ship was just completing a successful WestPAC/Indian Ocean deployment and was at Subic Bay at the time. The Navy reported the airman faced disciplinary action for leaving his post and for leaving the ship twice without permission in Hong Kong.
A federal court dismissed criminal charges brought by the Trerice family against Pedersen and other officers on the ''Ranger'', and the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals upheld the dismissal.
On 26 February 1983, she received an official visit from
Queen Elizabeth II
Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary; 21 April 19268 September 2022) was Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 6 February 1952 until Death and state funeral of Elizabeth II, her death in 2022. ...
and
Prince Philip
Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh (born Prince Philip of Greece and Denmark, later Philip Mountbatten; 10 June 19219 April 2021), was the husband of Queen Elizabeth II. As such, he was the consort of the British monarch from h ...
, who were on a West Coast tour to visit San Diego.
''Ranger'' entered the history books on 21 March 1983 when an all-woman flight crew flying a
C-1A Trader from VRC-40 "Truckin' Traders" landed aboard the carrier. The aircraft was commanded by LT Elizabeth M. Toedt and the crew included LTJG Cheryl A. Martin, Aviation Machinist's Mate 3rd Class Gina Greterman, and Aviation Machinist's Mate Airman Robin Banks.
On 1 November 1983, a fire broke out in #4 Main Machinery Room due to a fuel spill during fuel transfer operations while ''Ranger'' was deployed in the North
Arabian Sea
The Arabian Sea () is a region of sea in the northern Indian Ocean, bounded on the west by the Arabian Peninsula, Gulf of Aden and Guardafui Channel, on the northwest by Gulf of Oman and Iran, on the north by Pakistan, on the east by India, and ...
east of
Oman
Oman, officially the Sultanate of Oman, is a country located on the southeastern coast of the Arabian Peninsula in West Asia and the Middle East. It shares land borders with Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, and Yemen. Oman’s coastline ...
. Six crewmen were killed as a result of the fire,
which knocked out one of the ship's four engines and disabled one of her four shafts.''Ranger'' returned to the Philippines after 121 consecutive days at sea. One enlisted man was imprisoned for two months of a three-month sentence for dereliction of duty relating to the fire, but the Navy released him early and reprimanded four officers after an investigation in 1984. The report blamed the fire, which resulted in $1.7 million ($ today) in damages in addition to the deaths, on engineering officers and their superiors.
In early 1985, ''Ranger'' was used to film some interior scenes for the film ''
Top Gun
''Top Gun'' is a 1986 American action drama film directed by Tony Scott and produced by Don Simpson and Jerry Bruckheimer, with distribution by Paramount Pictures. The screenplay was written by Jim Cash and Jack Epps Jr., and was inspired ...
''. In 1986, the ship stood in for for scenes filmed for ''
Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home''.

On 14 July 1987, ''Ranger'' started her "Pearl" Anniversary Cruise. During this cruise, ''Ranger'' relieved ''Midway'' and her carrier group in the Indian Ocean. During this period, ''Ranger'' took part in
Operation Earnest Will
Operation Earnest Will (24 July 1987 – 26 September 1988) was an American military protection of Kuwaiti-owned tankers from Iranian attacks in 1987 and 1988, three years into the Tanker War phase of the Iran–Iraq War. It was the largest na ...
under which the Kuwait tankers were reflagged under US colors.
On 24 July 1987, Tactical Electronics Warfare Squadron 131 (
VAQ-131
Electronic Attack Squadron 131 (VAQ-131), also known as the "Lancers," is a United States Navy tactical jet aircraft squadron specializing in kinetic and non-kinetic Suppression of Enemy Air Defenses (SEAD). They are based at Naval Air Station W ...
) began the first Pacific Fleet deployment of the
EA-6B Prowler
The Northrop Grumman (formerly Grumman) EA-6B Prowler is a twin-engine, four-seat, mid-wing electronic-warfare aircraft. Operated by both the United States Marine Corps and United States Navy between 1971 and 2019, it was derived from the A- ...
equipped with
AGM-88 HARM
The AGM-88 HARM (High-speed Anti-Radiation Missile) is a tactical, air-to-surface anti-radiation missile designed to home in on electronic transmissions coming from surface-to-air radar systems. It was originally developed by Texas Instruments ...
missiles, deployed in ''Ranger''.
On 19 October 1987, ''Ranger'' took part in
Operation Nimble Archer
Operation Nimble Archer was the 19 October 1987 attack on two Iranian oil platforms in the Persian Gulf by United States Navy forces. The attack was a response to Iran's missile attack on , a reflagged Kuwaiti oil tanker at anchor off Kuwait, wh ...
, an attack on two Iranian oil platforms in the Persian Gulf by US Navy forces. The attack was a response to Iran's missile attack three days earlier on MV ''Sea Isle City'', a reflagged Kuwaiti oil tanker at anchor off Kuwait. The action occurred during
Operation Earnest Will
Operation Earnest Will (24 July 1987 – 26 September 1988) was an American military protection of Kuwaiti-owned tankers from Iranian attacks in 1987 and 1988, three years into the Tanker War phase of the Iran–Iraq War. It was the largest na ...
, the effort to protect Kuwaiti shipping amid the Iran-Iraq War. Air cover was provided by , two
F-14 Tomcat
The Grumman F-14 Tomcat is an American carrier-capable supersonic, twin-engine, tandem two-seat, twin-tail, all-weather-capable variable-sweep wing fighter aircraft. The Tomcat was developed for the United States Navy's Naval Fighter Experi ...
fighters, and an
E-2 Hawkeye
The Northrop Grumman E-2 Hawkeye is an American all-weather, carrier-capable tactical airborne early warning (AEW) aircraft. This twin-turboprop aircraft was designed and developed during the late 1950s and early 1960s by the Grumman Aircraft ...
from ''Ranger''.
On 3 August 1989, ''Ranger'' rescued 39 Vietnamese refugees, adrift for 10 days on a barge in heavy seas and monsoon rains in the South China Sea, about from NAS Cubi Point.
SH-3s Sea Kings from HS-14 along with two Sea Knights assisted. An
A-6 Intruder
The Grumman A-6 Intruder is a twinjet all-weather subsonic attack aircraft developed and manufactured by American aircraft company Grumman Aerospace. It was formerly operated by the U.S. Navy and U.S. Marine Corps.
The A-6 was designed in ...
from VA-145 spotted the barge, which had apparently broken loose from its mooring near a small island off the coast of Vietnam with 10 men on board. Twenty-nine other refugees from a sinking refugee boat climbed aboard the barge when it drifted out to sea. After examination by medical personnel, all were flown to NAS Cubi Point for further processing.
1990s
President
George H. W. Bush
George Herbert Walker BushBefore the outcome of the 2000 United States presidential election, he was usually referred to simply as "George Bush" but became more commonly known as "George H. W. Bush", "Bush Senior," "Bush 41," and even "Bush th ...
addressed the nation on 16 January 1991 at 9 pm EST and announced that
Operation Desert Storm
Operation or Operations may refer to:
Arts, entertainment and media
* ''Operation'' (game), a battery-operated board game that challenges dexterity
* Operation (music), a term used in musical set theory
* ''Operations'' (magazine), Multi-Man ...
had begun. The Navy launched 228 sorties from ''Ranger'' and in the
Persian Gulf
The Persian Gulf, sometimes called the Arabian Gulf, is a Mediterranean seas, mediterranean sea in West Asia. The body of water is an extension of the Arabian Sea and the larger Indian Ocean located between Iran and the Arabian Peninsula.Un ...
, from en route to the Persian Gulf, and from , ''Saratoga'', and ''America'' in the
Red Sea
The Red Sea is a sea inlet of the Indian Ocean, lying between Africa and Asia. Its connection to the ocean is in the south, through the Bab-el-Mandeb Strait and the Gulf of Aden. To its north lie the Sinai Peninsula, the Gulf of Aqaba, and th ...
. In addition, the Navy launched more than 100
Tomahawk missiles from nine ships in the Mediterranean Sea, the Red Sea, and the Persian Gulf.
An
A-6E Intruder
The Grumman A-6 Intruder is a twinjet all-weather subsonic attack aircraft developed and manufactured by American aircraft company Grumman Aerospace. It was formerly operated by the U.S. Navy and U.S. Marine Corps.
The A-6 was designed in res ...
from ''Ranger'' was shot down two miles off the Iraqi coast by antiaircraft artillery on 18 January 1991, after laying MK36 naval mines on a waterway linking the Iraqi naval base of
Umm Qasr
Umm Qasr (, also transliterated as ''Um-qasir'', ''Um-qasser, Um Qasr. Kurdish: ئومقەسڕ, Ûmqêsir'') is a port city in southern Iraq. It stands on the canalised Khawr az-Zubayr, part of the Khawr Abd Allah estuary which leads to the P ...
with the Persian Gulf. The pilot and the navigator/bombardier were killed.

On 26 January, an
EA-6B Prowler
The Northrop Grumman (formerly Grumman) EA-6B Prowler is a twin-engine, four-seat, mid-wing electronic-warfare aircraft. Operated by both the United States Marine Corps and United States Navy between 1971 and 2019, it was derived from the A- ...
from ''Ranger'' spotted two large tankers in a waterway northeast of
Bubiyan Island
Bubiyan Island () is the largest island in the Kuwaiti coastal island chain situated in the north-western corner of the Persian Gulf, with an area of . Bubiyan Island is part of the Shatt al-Arab delta.
The Mubarak Al Kabeer Port is currently ...
. Two of ''Ranger''s A-6Es hit one of them with an
AGM-123 Skipper missile on the starboard side.
[
On 6 February, an F-14A Tomcat of Fighter Squadron 1 (]VF-1
Fighter Squadron 1 (VF-1) was a fighter squadron of the United States Navy. Originally established on 14 October 1972 it was disestablished on 30 September 1993. It was the fifth US Navy squadron to be designated VF-1. Known as the "Wolfpack" t ...
) "Wolfpack" launched from the ''Ranger'' downed an Iraqi Mi-8 Hip helicopter with an AIM-9M Sidewinder missile. At 9 pm EST on 27 February, President Bush declared Kuwait had been liberated and Operation Desert Storm would end at midnight.
On 21 April 1992, in harmony with other World War II
World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
50th-anniversary festivities, ''Ranger'' participated in the commemorative re-enactment of the Doolittle Raid on Tokyo, Japan. Two World War II-era B-25
The North American B-25 Mitchell is an American medium bomber that was introduced in 1941 and named in honor of Brigadier General William "Billy" Mitchell, a pioneer of U.S. military aviation. Used by many Allied air forces, the B-25 served ...
bombers were craned on board, and over 1,500 guests (including national, local and military media) were embarked to witness the two vintage aircraft travel down ''Ranger'' flight deck and take off. In June, ''Ranger'' made an historic port visit to Vancouver
Vancouver is a major city in Western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the cit ...
, British Columbia, in conjunction with her final phase of pre-deployment workups.
Fully combat ready, ''Ranger'' began her 21st and final western Pacific and Indian Ocean deployment on 1 August 1992. On 18 August, she entered Yokosuka, for a six-day port visit and upkeep. ''Ranger'' entered the Persian Gulf on 14 September by transiting the Straits of Hormuz. The next day, ''Ranger'' relieved in an unusual close-aboard ceremony and along with her embarked air wing, Carrier Air Wing 2, immediately began flying patrol missions in support of the United Kingdom and United States-declared "No Fly" zone in southern Iraq: Operation Southern Watch
Operation Southern Watch was an air-centric military operation conducted by the United States Department of Defense from August 1992 to March 2003.
United States Central Command's Joint Task Force Southwest Asia (JTF-SWA) had the mission of moni ...
.
While in the Persian Gulf, former Cold War adversaries became at-sea partners as ''Ranger'', British, and French naval forces joined with the Russian guided missile destroyer for an exercise involving communication, maneuvering, and signaling drills. During joint operations, a Russian Kamov Ka-27
The Kamov Ka-27 (NATO reporting name 'Helix') is a military helicopter developed for the Soviet Navy, and as of 2024 is in service in various countries including Russia, Ukraine, Vietnam, China, South Korea, and India. Variants include the Ka-2 ...
"Helix" helicopter
A helicopter is a type of rotorcraft in which Lift (force), lift and thrust are supplied by horizontally spinning Helicopter rotor, rotors. This allows the helicopter to VTOL, take off and land vertically, to hover (helicopter), hover, and ...
landed aboard ''Ranger''. It was the first such landing on a US Navy aircraft carrier.
''Ranger'' left the Persian Gulf on 4 December 1992 and steamed at high speed to the coast of Somalia
Somalia, officially the Federal Republic of Somalia, is the easternmost country in continental Africa. The country is located in the Horn of Africa and is bordered by Ethiopia to the west, Djibouti to the northwest, Kenya to the southwest, th ...
. ''Ranger'' played a significant role in the massive relief effort for starving Somalis in Operation Restore Hope
The Unified Task Force (UNITAF), also known as Operation Restore Hope, was a United States-led, United Nations-sanctioned multinational military force deployed to Somalia from 5 December 1992 to 4 May 1993. It was established to replace United ...
. The ''Ranger''/CVW-2 team provided photo and visual reconnaissance, airborne air traffic control, logistics support, and on-call close air support
Close air support (CAS) is defined as aerial warfare actions—often air-to-ground actions such as strafes or airstrikes—by military aircraft against hostile targets in close proximity to friendly forces. A form of fire support, CAS requires ...
for Navy and Marine amphibious forces. Throughout Operations Southern Watch and Restore Hope, ''Ranger'' took 63 digital photograph
Digital photography uses cameras containing arrays of electronics, electronic photodetectors interfaced to an analog-to-digital converter (ADC) to produce images focused by a lens (optics), lens, as opposed to an exposure on photographic film. ...
s which were sent by International Marine Satellite to the Navy Office of Information within hours of being taken. This was the first time digital pictures were successfully transmitted from a US Navy ship at sea.
On 19 December 1992, ''Ranger'' was relieved on station by ''Kitty Hawk'' and began her last journey homeward to San Diego
San Diego ( , ) is a city on the Pacific coast of Southern California, adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a population of over 1.4 million, it is the List of United States cities by population, eighth-most populous city in t ...
.
Decommissioning and fate
After the late 1980s defense cuts, ''Ranger'' did not undergo the Service Life Extension Program (SLEP) modernization process as did her three sisters and the later ''Kitty Hawk''-class ships, and by the early 1990s, her material condition was declining. Both the outgoing Bush and incoming Clinton administrations recommended cuts to the defense budget, so the retirement of ''Ranger'', along with her sisters ''Forrestal'' and ''Saratoga'', was put forth. ''Ranger'' was decommissioned on 10 July 1993 after 36 years of service, and was at the Naval Inactive Ship Maintenance Facility
A Naval Inactive Ship Maintenance Facility (NISMF) is a facility owned by the United States Navy as a holding facility for decommissioned naval vessels, pending determination of their final fate. All ships in these facilities are inactive, but s ...
, Bremerton, Washington
Bremerton is a city in Kitsap County, Washington, Kitsap County, Washington (state), Washington, United States. The population was 43,505 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census and an estimated 44,122 in 2021, making it the largest city ...
. This decommissioning came instead of a refit scheduled for the same year. Such an extension would have extended ''Ranger''s life into 2002, requiring a reauthorization in 1994. In September 2010, the not-for-profit USS ''Ranger'' Foundation submitted an application to Naval Sea Systems Command
The Naval Sea Systems Command (NAVSEA) is the largest of the United States Navy's United States Navy systems commands, five "systems commands," or materiel (not to be confused with "material") organizations. From a physical perspective, NAVSEA ha ...
proposing the donation of ''Ranger'' for use as a museum ship
A museum ship, also called a memorial ship, is a ship that has been preserved and converted into a museum open to the public for educational or memorial purposes. Some are also used for training and recruitment purposes, mostly for the small numb ...
and multipurpose facility, to be located on the Columbia River
The Columbia River (Upper Chinook language, Upper Chinook: ' or '; Sahaptin language, Sahaptin: ''Nch’i-Wàna'' or ''Nchi wana''; Sinixt dialect'' '') is the largest river in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. The river headwater ...
at Chinook Landing Marine Park in Fairview, Oregon
Fairview is a city in Multnomah County, Oregon, United States. The population was 10,424 at the 2020 census.
History
Members of the Multnomah tribe of Chinookan Indians lived in a village on Sauvie Island by the Columbia River (the future sit ...
. However, in September 2012, NAVSEA rejected the foundation's proposal, and redesignated the ship for scrapping. Preparations for disposal ''Ranger'' were completed 29 May 2014.
In August 2014, a new attempt began to convince the Navy not to scrap the ship. A petition on Change.org attracted over 2500 signatures. The hope was that ''Ranger'' could be located in Long Beach harbor as a museum. However, when asked by the ''Long Beach Press-Telegram'', NAVSEA stated that ''Ranger'' was no longer available for donation and was slated to be scrapped in 2015.
On 22 December 2014, the U.S. Navy paid one cent to International Shipbreaking of Brownsville, Texas
Brownsville ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the county seat of Cameron County, Texas, Cameron County, located on the western Gulf Coast in South Texas, adjacent to the Mexico–United States border, border with Matamoros, Tamaulipas ...
, to tow and scrap ''Ranger''. International Shipbreaking paid to tow her around South America, through the Straits of Magellan
The Strait of Magellan (), also called the Straits of Magellan, is a navigable sea route in southern Chile separating mainland South America to the north and the Tierra del Fuego archipelago to the south. Considered the most important natural ...
, as ''Ranger'' was too big to fit through the Panama Canal
The Panama Canal () is an artificial waterway in Panama that connects the Caribbean Sea with the Pacific Ocean. It cuts across the narrowest point of the Isthmus of Panama, and is a Channel (geography), conduit for maritime trade between th ...
. The tow began on 5 March 2015 from the inactive ships maintenance facility, Bremerton, Washington, to Brownsville. International Shipbreaking expected to make a profit from ''Ranger'' after the costs of the tow and the actual dismantling of the ship.
On 7 April 2015, ex-''Ranger'' was seen anchored about three miles offshore at Panama City
Panama City, also known as Panama, is the capital and largest city of Panama. It has a total population of 1,086,990, with over 2,100,000 in its metropolitan area. The city is located at the Pacific Ocean, Pacific entrance of the Panama Canal, i ...
, Panama
Panama, officially the Republic of Panama, is a country in Latin America at the southern end of Central America, bordering South America. It is bordered by Costa Rica to the west, Colombia to the southeast, the Caribbean Sea to the north, and ...
, attracting a lot of wild speculation as President Obama was scheduled to arrive two days later, for the 7th Summit of the Americas
The seventh Summit of the Americas was held at Panama City, Panama, on April 10 – 11, 2015.
Background
The Summits of the Americas are a continuing series of summits bringing together the leaders of the Americas including North America (which i ...
. Newspapers went so far as to repeat the local speculation that the ship was there to provide security for President Obama. On 12 July 2015, ''Ranger'' arrived at Brownsville for scrapping
Scrap consists of Recycling, recyclable materials, usually metals, left over from product manufacturing and consumption, such as parts of vehicles, building supplies, and surplus materials. Unlike waste, scrap can have Waste valorization, mone ...
. The scrapping process was completed on 1 November 2017, though more than five tons of historic items from the ship were preserved for display at the USS ''Lexington'' Museum.
Both of ''Ranger'''s anchors were reused on the 2003 commissioned, USS ''Ronald Reagan''.
Awards and decorations
''Ranger'' earned 13 battle stars for service during the Vietnam War.
References
*
*
External links
*U.S. Navy websites:
**
*
history.navy.mil: Navy photos of ''Ranger''
from navsource.org
NAVSEA – Historic Significance Evaluation, USS ''Ranger''
30 November 2010.
Navy Awards Contract for Ranger Dismantling
22 December 2014
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ranger (Cva-61)
Forrestal-class aircraft carriers
Ships built in Newport News, Virginia
1957 ships
Cold War aircraft carriers of the United States
Vietnam War aircraft carriers of the United States
Gulf War ships of the United States