Amphibious Assault Ship
LHD 1 - USS Wasp
Type, Class:		Amphibious Assault Ship (Multi Purpose) - LHD; Wasp - class planned and built as LHD 1
Builder:		Ingalls Shipbuilding, Pascagoula, Mississippi, USA
STATUS:		Awarded: February 28, 1984 Laid down: May 30, 1985 Launched: August 4, 1987 Commissioned: July 6, 1989 ACTIVE UNIT/ in commission (Atlantic Fleet)
Homeport:		Norfolk, Virginia, USA
Namesake:		traditionally; named in honor of the previous 9 ships which were named Wasp; > see history, below;
Ship's Motto:		HONOR - TRADITION - EXCELLENCE
Technical Data: (Measures, Propulsion, Armament, Aviation, etc.)		see: INFO > Wasp class Amphibious Assault Ship - LHD
ship images
Lockheed Martin F-35B Lightning II Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) during short take-off and vertical landing tests aboard USS Wasp - October 2011
F-35B Lightning II Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) is landing aboard USS Wasp - October 2011 San Francisco - October 2011 Atlantic Ocean - August 2011 Atlantic Ocean - August 2011 Atlantic Ocean - August 2011 Atlantic Ocean - August 2011 Norfolk, Virginia - August 2011 Norfolk, Virginia - August 2011 MV-22B Osprey takes off from the flight deck of USS Wasp (LHD 1) - Atlantic Ocean - August 2010 Norfolk, Virginia - December 2009 Caribbean Sea - November 2009 CH-53E Super Stallions (HMH-461) - Caribbean Sea - November 2009 CH-53E Super Stallions (HMH-461) - Caribbean Sea - November 2009 Atlantic Ocean - October 2009 Atlantic Ocean - October 2009 Atlantic Ocean - October 2009 Atlantic Ocean - October 2009 Mediterranean Sea - September 2007 Mediterranean Sea - September 2007 MV-22B Osprey (VMM-263) - Gulf of Aqaba - October 2007 MV-22B Ospreys of VMM-263 - Gulf of Aqaba - October 2007 Gulf of Aqaba - October 2007 Gulf of Aqaba - October 2007 MV-22B Ospreys of VMM-263 - Gulf of Aqaba - October 2007 Gulf of Aqaba - October 2007 Gulf of Aqaba - October 2007 MV-22B Ospreys of VMM-263 - Gulf of Aqaba - October 2007 Gulf of Aqaba - October 2007 Gulf of Aqaba - October 2007 Caribbean Sea - September 2007 Atlantic Ocean - September 2007 MH-53E Sea Dragon of HM-15 - Atlantic Ocean - September 2007 USS Wasp (LHD-1) and USS Mitscher (DDG 57) - Caribbean Sea - August 2007 Norfolk, Virginia - June 2007 Norfolk, Virginia - June 2007 New York - May 2007 New York - May 2007 Atlantic Ocean - May 2007 Atlantic Ocean - May 2007 Atlantic Ocean - November 2006 Atlantic Ocean - November 2006 Mediterranean Sea - September 2006 Atlantic Ocean - November 2005 Atlantic Ocean - November 2005 Atlantic Ocean - November 2005 MH-60S Seahawk (HSC-28) - Atlantic Ocean - November 2005 MV-22B Osprey (VMX-22) - Atlantic Ocean - November 2005 MV-22B Osprey (VMX-22) - Atlantic Ocean - November 2005 Atlantic Ocean - October 2005 Atlantic Ocean - October 2005 Atlantic Ocean - June 2005 Atlantic Ocean - June 2005 Atlantic Ocean - June 2005 Atlantic Ocean - June 2005 Atlantic Ocean - June 2005 Atlantic Ocean - June 2005 CH-53E Super Stallion - Atlantic Ocean - June 2005 Norfolk, Virginia - June 2005 Norfolk, Virginia - September 2004 AV-8B Harrier II - HMM-266 (REIN) - Arabian Gulf - August 2004 CH-46 Sea Knight - HMM-266 (REIN) - Arabian Gulf - July 2004 CH-46 Sea Knights - HMM-266 (REIN) - Arabian Gulf - July 2004 AV-8B Harrier II - HMM-266 (REIN) - Indian Ocean - April 2004 AV-8B Harrier II - HMM-266 (REIN) - Indian Ocean - April 2004 AV-8B Harrier II - HMM-266 (REIN) - Indian Ocean - April 2004 Indian Ocean - April 2004 Northern Arabian Gulf - March 2004 Arabian Gulf - March 2004 Valletta, Malta - March 2004 Gulf of Mexico - December 2003 Norfolk, Virginia - September 2003 Gulf of Mexico - July 2003 Operation Enduring Freedom - July 2002 Operation Enduring Freedom - June 2002 June 2002 a RIM-7 Sea Sparrow missile was fired from a Mk-29 launcher - January 2002 a RIM-116 Rolling Airframe Missile (RAM) was fired from a Mk-49 GMLS - March 2001 Norfolk, Virginia - September 1999 Mediterranean Sea - May 1998 Mediterranean Sea - May 1998 January 1998 Joint Task Force Exercise 98-1 (JTFEX 98-1) - January 1998 Joint Task Force Exercise 98-1 (JTFEX 98-1) - January 1998 Joint Task Force Exercise 98-1 (JTFEX 98-1) - January 1998 off North Carolina - October 1997 Hampton Roadstead, Virginia - April 1996 Chesapeake Bay, Virginia - August 1995 Chesapeake Bay, Virginia - August 1995 Norfolk, Virginia - June 1995 Surmadal Fjord - Exercise STRONG RESOLVE 95 - March 1995 Exercise STRONG RESOLVE 95 - March 1995 Exercise STRONG RESOLVE 95 - March 1995 Jebel Ali, Dubai, UAE - May 1993 Jebel Ali, Dubai, UAE - May 1993 Jebel Ali, Dubai, UAE - May 1993 Jebel Ali, Dubai, UAE - May 1993 Jebel Ali, Dubai, UAE - May 1993 Norfolk, Virginia - August 1992 Norfolk, Virginia - August 1992 Norfolk, Virginia - August 1992 Norfolk, Virginia - August 1992 June 1992 New York - February 1992 off Cartagena, Colombia - January 1992 October 1991 October 1991 October 1991 Exercise DISPLAY DETERMINATION 91 - October 1991 Exercise DISPLAY DETERMINATION 91 - October 1991 July 1991 July 1991 July 1991 July 1991 July 1991 July 1991 Operation PROVIDE COMFORT - Iskenderun Bay, Turkey - July 1991 July 1991 Mediterranean Sea - June 1991 Mediterranean Sea - June 1991 Mediterranean Sea - June 1991 Mediterranean Sea - June 1991 Mediterranean Sea - June 1991 V-22A Osprey - December 1990 September 1990 September 1990 September 1990 September 1990 September 1990 September 1990 September 1990 September 1990 September 1990 September 1990 September 1990 June 1990 June 1990 June 1990 LCAC-15 - March 1990 February 1990 September 1989 USS Coral Sea (CV 43) and USS Wasp (LHD 1) - September 1989 USS Coral Sea (CV 43) and USS Wasp (LHD 1) - September 1989 September 1989 commissioning ceremony - July 1989 commissioning ceremony - July 1989 July 1989 July 1989 July 1989 July 1989 July 1989 July 1989 July 1989 July 1989 July 1989 July 1989 July 1989 July 1989 undated July 1989 April 1989 April 1989 August 1988 christening - September 1987
Namesake & History:
In naming LHD-1 "Wasp", the Navy honors nine previous ships, dating to the American Revolution, which have borne this illustrious name. Previous U.S. Navy ships named Wasp include: a schooner (1775-1777), a sloop of war (1806-1813), another schooner (1810-1814), a tender sloop (1813-1814), a ship-rigged  sloop of war (1814), an iron-hulled side wheel steamer (1865-1876), a steam yacht (1898-1921), and the most famous of the nine, two aircraft carriers, CV-7 (1940-1942) and CV-18 (1943-1972). The eighth Wasp was a 14,700 ton, 741-foot aircraft carrier that earned two battle stars during World War II. Wasp's sterling performance evoked British Prime Minister Winston Churchill's famous quote, "Who said a Wasp couldn't sting twice?" After shifting to the Pacific theater of operations, CV-7 participated in a number of major engagements before being sunk during the Battle of Guadalcanal on September 15, 1942. Following the loss of CV-7, CV-18, already under construction at the time, became the ninth Wasp. The ship earned eight battle stars for it's World War II service in the Pacific. After 29 years of gallant naval service, CV-18 was decommissioned in 1972.
USS Wasp (LHD 1): In February 1993, she left her port on an emergency deployment to Somalia to participate in the United Nations intervention: Operation Restore Hope. Joint Chiefs Chairman, Gen. Colin Powell landed on the ship that April for a discussion of military tactics taking place in and around Mogadishu. Following that, she assisted off the coast of Kuwait for another operation. She later made stops in Toulon, France and Rota, Spain, en route to her home port in Norfolk, Virginia. In 1998, she won the Marjorie Sterrett Battleship Fund Award for the Atlantic Fleet. In February 2004, the USS Wasp set sail to take the Marines of BLT 1/6 and HMM-266 Rein to Afghanistan. They arrived at the end of March and offloaded the Marines. They then turned around and went back to the states to pick up the Marines from HMH-461 to take them to Djibouti. After offloading the HMH-461 in Djibouti, they picked up the Marines of HMM-266 Rein from Kuwait in August 2004, and returned to the coast of Norfolk, Virginia mid September 2004. On 7 July 2006, Vice President Dick Cheney, visited the USS Wasp. He gave a speech honoring the efforts of the USS Nassau Expeditionary Strike Group in Operation Iraqi Freedom. The Wasp was the principal attraction at Fleet Week 2007 in New York City. In September 2007, the USS Wasp sailed to Nicaragua to offer help to the victims of Hurricane Felix. USS Wasp was the first ship to deploy the V-22 Osprey, doing so in October 2007, by carrying VMM-263's ten MV-22B Ospreys to Iraq to participate in Operation Iraqi Freedom. On October 4, 2009, the USS Wasp deployed from its base at Norfolk Naval Station in Norfolk, Virginia on a three month voyage down the Atlantic coast, to the Caribbean as part of the Southern Partnership Station, amphibious with Destroyer Squadron 40 and an embarked security cooperation Marine Air-Ground Task Force. The 1,100 Sailors and 365 embarked Marines conducted operations and exercises in the U.S. 4th Fleet area of responsibility. The operation, called the Southern Partnership Station is part of "Partnership of the Americas" maritime strategy, which focuses on building interoperability and cooperation in the region to meet common challenges, specifically with matters involving the recent executive orders that United States President Barack Obama addressed on January 22, 2009 of the closing down of Guantanamo Bay detention camp in Cuba. The camp which holds hundreds of prisoners suspected of international terrorism is scheduled to close within a year. In mid-October 2009, The USS Wasp set anchor at the Guantanamo Bay Naval Base in Cuba where the United States Marines that were on board, were assigned to training status for approx 3 months while the USS Wasp went underway. Since Cuba, the USS Wasp has not docked in Jamaica, contrary to rumors, but has practiced further operations and exercises throughout the Caribbean. USS Wasp returned to Norfolk Naval Station on December 22, 2009. On June 29, 2010, USS Wasp was one of the 18 international vessels taking part in the 100th anniversary celebrations of the Canadian Navy in Halifax, Nova Scotia. The Canadian and international warships were reviewed by Queen Elizabeth II, the Duke of Edinburgh, and Prime Minister Stephen Harper. In 2011 the Wasp was modified for F-35B testing, including replacing a Sea Sparrow launcher with monitoring equipment. She returned to sea on 7 July 2011. source: wikipedia
patches
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