USS Lake Champlain (CG-57) is a Ticonderoga class cruiser in the United States Navy

United States Navy

The United States Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. The U.S. Navy is the largest in the world; its battle fleet tonnage is greater than that of the next 13 largest navies combined. The U.S...

. It is the third ship to be named Lake Champlain, in honor of Battle of Lake Champlain, which took place during the War of 1812

War of 1812

The War of 1812 was a military conflict fought between the forces of the United States of America and those of the British Empire. The Americans declared war in 1812 for several reasons, including trade restrictions because of Britain's ongoing war with France, impressment of American merchant...

.

Ship history

Lake Champlain was laid down 3 March 1986 at Ingalls Shipbuilding

Ingalls Shipbuilding

Ingalls Shipbuilding is a shipyard located in Pascagoula, Mississippi, USA, originally established in 1938, and is now part of Huntington Ingalls Industries...

, Pascagoula, Mississippi

Pascagoula, Mississippi

Pascagoula is a city in Jackson County, Mississippi, United States. It is the principal city of the Pascagoula, Mississippi Metropolitan Statistical Area, as a part of the Gulfport–Biloxi–Pascagoula, Mississippi Combined Statistical Area. The population was 26,200 at the 2000 census...

, launched 3 April 1987 and commissioned 12 August 1988 at Intrepid Pier at the Intrepid Sea-Air-Space Museum

Intrepid Sea-Air-Space Museum

The Intrepid Sea-Air-Space Museum is a military and maritime history museum with a collection of museum ships in New York City. It is located at Pier 86 at 46th Street on the West Side of Manhattan. The museum showcases the World War II aircraft carrier USS Intrepid, the submarine , a Concorde...

 in New York City

New York City

New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...

, Captain Ralph K. Martin commanding. She then steamed to her homeport of San Diego, via Cape Horn

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...

, South America, losing part of her Hurricane Bow in heavy seas. She has been to the Persian Gulf

Persian Gulf

The Persian Gulf, in Southwest Asia, is an extension of the Indian Ocean located between Iran and the Arabian Peninsula.The Persian Gulf was the focus of the 1980–1988 Iran-Iraq War, in which each side attacked the other's oil tankers...

 many times, first as a part of Operation Desert Shield, then later following Desert Storm. She aided in the evacuation of the Philippines

Philippines

The Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...

 during the Mount Pinatubo

Mount Pinatubo

Mount Pinatubo is an active stratovolcano located on the island of Luzon, near the tripoint of the Philippine provinces of Zambales, Tarlac, and Pampanga. It is located in the Tri-Cabusilan Mountain range separating the west coast of Luzon from the central plains, and is west of the dormant and...

 eruption while transiting to the Persian Gulf.

November 2007 Explosion

On 10 November 2007 an explosion occurred on the ship during routine maintenance in a San Diego dry dock. Six workers were injured, two critically. The explosion was apparently caused when flammable gases, inside the pump room where the workers were working, ignited. On 23 November 2007 the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration

Occupational Safety and Health Administration

The United States Occupational Safety and Health Administration is an agency of the United States Department of Labor. It was created by Congress of the United States under the Occupational Safety and Health Act, signed by President Richard M. Nixon, on December 29, 1970...

 announced that it would be conducting an investigation into the explosion.

External links

• Official web site
• Naval Vessel Register - CG-57
• unofficial navysite.de: USS Lake Champlain (CG-57)
• navsource.org: USS Lake Champlain (CG-57)
• USS Lake Champlain (CG-57) command histories – Naval History & Heritage Command