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Monday, March 5, 2001

President George W. Bush joined Nancy Reagan at Dock 12 of the Newport News Shipbuilding and Drydock Co., where the vessel was built, as the former first lady officially christened the USS Ronald Reagan, one of 10 Nimitz-class carriers in the U.S. naval fleet.

"Looking at the bow of this great ship, we think of those who will sail it, and of those who built it, and to this ship, six years in the making, we have put the finest of American workmanship. On board this ship, we'll put the finest sailors in the world. And upon this ship we have put the finest of American names," Bush said in his address.

The event coincided with the Reagans' 49th wedding anniversary. Nancy Reagan drew a laugh from Bush as he was sprayed with champagne when she cracked the bottle against the bow of the massive ship.

"I want to thank the Navy for a such a wonderful present," Nancy Reagan said looking up at the massive gray metal aircraft carrier that towers 20 stories above the waterline. "Such a little thing."

More than five thousand people braved the cold and gray, rainy skies to witness the dedication, converging on Newport News, one of the world's major shipbuilding centers comprised of about 5000,000 residents. The ship designated "CVN-76 Ronald Reagan" sat on the James River – a stone's throw from the Chesapeake Bay – beneath a massive blue crane, decorated in red, white and blue banners and the American flag. The bow was adorned with a black-and-white oval picture of President Reagan.

Under it, Bush and the top brass of the U.S. Navy, including Admiral Vern Clark and Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld, Republican National Committee leader Virginia Gov. Jim Gilmore and Sen. John Warner paid homage to Ronald Reagan, his political vision and his lasting legacy of military strength.

"When we send her off to sea, it is certain that the Ronald Reagan will meet with rough waters as well as smooth, and headwinds as well as fair. But she will sail tall and strong, like the man we have known," Bush said.

President Reagan served as the military's commander in chief from 1980 to 1988, serving two terms in the White House. A staunch advocate of a strong Navy and seen as the chief architect of the end of the Cold War, Reagan initiated five Nimitz-class carriers while he was president.

Bush pointed out that the world has changed since Reagan's presidency, that freedom still has enemies with dangers less concentrated and more varied.

"They come from rogue nations, from terrorism, from missiles that threaten our forces, our friends, our allies and our homeland. Our times call for new thinking. But the values Ronald Reagan brought to America's conduct in the world will not change," Bush said.

Warner, chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, called the USS Ronald Reagan "an island of democracy" and said that if its namesake were present he'd say, "For an old second lieutenant, not bad." Gilmore called the Reagans heroes to his family and thousands around the world.

Nancy Reagan's dedication to her husband was also praised, with Bush saying, "Mrs. Reagan, anyone who has seen you together knows how much you mean to him. I want you to know how much your care and love for him means to America." The former first lady recently published a book of love letters that President Reagan wrote to her during their courtship and marriage, and she has fiercely protected his privacy since his illness struck.

Reagan celebrated his 90th birthday on Feb. 22, a few weeks after undergoing surgery for a broken hip sustained in a fall Jan. 12 at his Bel-Air, Calif. ranch. Reagan suffers from Alzheimer's disease, a memory-robbing ailment. He stopped making public appearances in 1994 after he was diagnosed. In a poignant open letter to the American people, Reagan wrote then that he was beginning "the journey that will lead me into the sunset of my life" and that he knew "that for America there will always be a bright dawn ahead." Reagan also survived a 1981 assassination attempt, colon cancer surgery in 1985, and a 1987 prostate and skin-cancer surgery.

An airport located in Virginia and an international trade center in Washington have already been named for the former president.

The USS Ronald Reagan, a $4 billion vessel, is one of the last of the Navy's Nimitz-class ships. Construction began in late 1996 at the Newport News Shipbuilding and Drydock Co. in Newport News, Va. Construction on the ship is about 60 percent complete and the ship is scheduled to be launched six days after its christening. Then it will undergo another two years of final construction, six weeks of sea testing and then delivery to the U.S. Navy in 2003. It will replace the USS Constellation, which Reagan toured during his presidency.

The 90,000-ton ship is one of the most sophisticated vessels in the world, measuring 1,092 feet long – as long as the Empire State Building is tall – and able to carry more than 80 aircraft and 6,000 sailors, and cruise at speeds of more than 30 knots. The ship is powered by two nuclear reactors that can operate for more than 20 years without refueling.

The USS Ronald Reagan has a 4.5-acre flight deck and sports four bronze propellers, each measuring 21 feet across and weighing 66,220 pounds. The ship will be on call for missions for about 50 years, according to officials at Newport News Shipbuilding, the company that also built the first nuclear-powered aircraft carrier, the USS Enterprise, delivered in 1961.

Copyright 2001 by United Press International. All rights reserved.

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