US Navy:
Ticonderoga-class guided-missile cruiser USS Lake Erie (CG 70) moored at Naval Base Point Loma’s deperming pier, Feb. 6-9, for an evolution which would put her crew to the test.
Deperming is a technique used by the U.S. Navy to reduce the magnetic signature of its warships. An all-hands event, the crew wrapped almost 80 cables, ranging 220-650 feet in length, around the vessel. Once wrapped, the cables are charged repeatedly helping to negate the magnetism the ship has built up over time. This process makes the ship less vulnerable to mines.
Since summer 2000, Lake Erie has been the Navy’s premiere ballistic missile defense test ship for the Pacific Fleet. As such, she completed various short deployments. However this spring, she and her crew will be put to the test as she joins Carrier Strike Group 11, alongside aircraft carrier USS Nimitz (CVN 68), for her first full deployment in several years.
With such a gap in deployments, Lake Erie was long overdue for a magnetic overhaul.
“Our ship definitely needed the treatment,” said Lt. Cmdr. Charlie Jones, chief engineer. “The contractors said we had the worst magnetic signature they had seen in five years.”
The crew is busy not only preparing the ship physically, but also mentally preparing the crew for the rigors of life at sea…
