Hangar Two, USS Carl Vinson, Naval Air Station Alameda, Alameda, CA

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The keel was laid at Newport News Shipbuilding on 11 October 1975, and on 15 March 1980 the ship was launched/christened. Congressman Carl Vinson became the first person in the history of the United States Navy to witness a ship's launching in his honor. After builder sea trials, she was delivered to the Navy on 26 February 1982.

The USS Carl Vinson (CVN-70) is the third United States Navy Nimitz class supercarrier and is named after Carl Vinson, a Congressman from Georgia, in recognition of his contributions to the US Navy. A member of the United States House of Representatives for fifty years, Carl Vinson was, for twenty-nine years, the Chairman of the House Naval Affairs and Armed Services Committee; Vinson was the principal sponsor of the so-called "Vinson Acts," culminating in the Two-Ocean Navy Act of 1940, which provided for the massive Naval shipbuilding effort in World War II.

The ship was launched in 1980, undertook her maiden voyage in 1983, Carl Vinson departed Norfolk on March 1, 1983 with Carrier Air Wing Fifteen (CVW-15) embarked for her maiden deployment, an eight-month around the world cruise to her new homeport of Naval Air Station Alameda, California, arriving on 28 Oct. 1983.[2]

On 12 August 1986 the ship departed Alameda for a western Pacific deployment, again with CVW-15 aboard, and in the process became the first modern U.S. aircraft carrier to operate in the Bering Sea. In January 1987, after operating extensively in the Indian Ocean and North Arabian Sea, Carl Vinson transited the Bering Sea once more while returning to NAS Alameda.[3)

1987: After conducting extensive operations in the Indian Ocean and North Arabian Sea, Carl Vinson transited the Bering Sea once again in January. During the transit to NAS Alameda, Carl Vinson received the highest grade ever given to an aircraft carrier during an Operational Reactor Safeguard Examination.

1988: Carl Vinson departed NAS Alameda for its fourth deployment on June 15, 1988

Besides deployments in Operation Desert Strike, Operation Iraqi Freedom, Operation Southern Watch, and Operation Enduring Freedom, the Carl Vinson was involved in a number of notable events. The body of Osama bin Laden was disposed of in 2011 from the deck of the Carl Vinson, and that same year, on November 11, she played host to the first NCAA basketball game on an aircraft carrier, between North Carolina and Michigan State.

The ship underwent Refueling and Overhaul between 2005 and 2009. Carl Vinson's callsign is "Gold Eagle".

Jerry performed on this ship on
3/6/87 JGB
Jerry had to play this show as part of his community service for getting arrested the year before in Golden Gate Park.
If you look at page 18 of the Official "1987 Command History" for the USS Carl Vinson (accessible as a PDF from footnote 4 at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/USS_Carl_Vinson_%28CVN-70%29), there is a list of "1987 Distinguished Visitors and Media Visits In Port."
For 6 Mar 87 it says "Jerry Garcia and The Grateful Dead, on board to give a daylight concert in Hangar Two."(1)




1.)^Arnold, Corry, 2009-12-10, Jerry garcia's Middle Finger, http://jgmf.blogspot.com/2009/12/jgb-uss-carl-vinson-sf-bay-march-6-1987.html
2.)^"Welcome to USS Carl Vinson CVN 70 Public Site". Cvn70.navy.mil.
3.)^http://www.history.navy.mil/shiphist/c/cvn-70/1987.pdf