Reuse is a key element in any ship conversion, and the Jupiter’s seven central, evenly spaced fifty foot tall coaling crane towers would prove incredibly useful. USS Jupiter, having been in Hampton Roads since December 12, 1919, was finally cleared for conversion at the Norfolk Navy Yard. After an angry Congressional hearing and a quick reversal of Benson’s actions by the embarrassed Secretary of the Navy Josephus Daniels, $500,000 was finally allocated to the project in January of 1920. Benson, shelved the entire project despite authorization and funding from Congress. The infighting even reached the point where the Chief of Naval Operations, Rear Admiral William S. He argued strongly in favor of Commander Kenneth Whiting’s proposal regarding the conversion of a long, relatively open collier, with its larger stowage spaces, convertible areas for increased personnel, and reduced smoke risks when compared to other nominated vessels. Irwin of the Chief of Naval Operation’s Aviation Desk had served overseas and observed British experiments up close. Factions within the Navy and Congress argued over if the conversion should be made to a battleship, cruiser, or merchant vessel. Her selection as the basis for America’s first aircraft carrier was the subject of much debate. The first turbo-electric vessel commissioned into the Navy, she was also the first to transit the Panama Canal eastward from the Pacific to the Atlantic and was chosen to transport the first Naval Aviation detachment to Europe during the First World War. The Jupiter was already a special ship in its own right.
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