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CGN-38 Virginia

The fifth VIRGINIA (CGN-38) was laid down on 19 August 1972 by the Newport News Shipbuilding & Dry Dock Co. as a nuclear-powered, guided-missile frigate, DLGN-38; launched on 14 December 1974; sponsored by Miss Virginia S. Warner, daughter of the Honorable John Warner, former Secretary of the Navy; reclassified a nuclear-powered, guided-missile cruiser and redesignated CGN-38 on 30 June 1975; and commissioned on 11 September 1976, Capt. George W. Davis, Jr., in command.

During the first six months of her commissioned service, VIRGINIA ranged the eastern seaboard of the United States and cruised in the West Indies several times conducting a myriad of post-commissioning tests and shakedown training. On 25 April 1977, she entered the Norfolk Naval Shipyard for a five-month, post shakedown availability. She completed her final sea trials on 28 September and began duty as an operational unit of the Atlantic Fleet. In November, she cruised along the New England and Canadian coasts, participating in antisubmarine warfare exercises. In December, she returned to the West Indies for missile firings on the Atlantic Fleet weapons range. She completed that mission on 13 December and reentered Norfolk three days later to begin holiday leave and upkeep in her home port. The beginning of 1978 found her still in Norfolk; but, by mid-month, she returned to sea in the Virginia capes operating area for a series of local operations. On 28 January, however, she departed Norfolk to return to the area along the Florida coast and in the West Indies for a series of special tests conducted under the auspices of the Office of the Chief of Naval Operations. The guided-missile cruiser returned to Norfolk on 23 March and resumed local operations.

That employment lasted until 23 August when she embarked upon a cruise to northern Europe to participate in Operation "Northern Wedding," a NATO exercise, the purpose of which was to test the ability to reinforce NATO forces in western Europe. During that deployment, she visited Oslo in Norway, Rotterdam in the Netherlands, and Portsmouth in England. The warship departed the latter port on 3 October and reentered Norfolk on the 12th. On 16 November, she put to sea for training exercises in the Gulf of Mexico. During that voyage, she made a port visit at Mobile Ala., and conducted naval gunfire support training at Vieques Island near Puerto Rico. She made another port visit to the island of St. Thomas on 6 and 7 December before heading home. VIRGINIA reentered Norfolk on 11 December and began preparations for her first deployment to the Mediterranean which was scheduled to commence in early 1979.

As part of an Indian Ocean deployment in 1980, she crossed the Indian Ocean to visit the Republic of the Philippines. During her third Mediterranean deployment in 1983, she fired nearly 300 five inch rounds into Beirut and assisted when the Marine barracks were bombed. She was honored as Sixth Fleet Top Hand for that deployment. In 1984, she entered Norfolk Naval Shipyard for her single major overhaul and was converted to the Navy's first strike cruiser with the addition of the Tomahawk weapons system and the SM-2 extension of her surface to air capability.

On 28 December 1990, VIRGINIA deployed to support Operation Desert Shield and later Desert Storm. Just after arrival in the Eastern Mediterranean, she launched two Tomahawks into Iraq in support of the liberation of Kuwait. For the last two years of active service, VIRGINIA joined in the war against drugs. During her Caribbean deployment in the fall of 1992, she passed through the Panama Canal and operated in the Pacific for a short time. In the course of her last deployment in the fall of 1993, she directly detected or controlled other Navy assets during successful interdictions of 36,200 pounds of marijuana and 2,000 kilos of cocaine.

In the course of her lifetime, many flag officers called VIRGINIA home while embarked at sea. The first was Admiral H. G. Rickover, who embarked during sea trials in July 1976. The last was Admiral Donald Dyer, COMSTANAVFORLANT in March 1993. She won the Battle E competition four times during her lifetime as the best nuclear cruiser on the East Coast and has won countless department awards.

Decommissioned and stricken from the Naval Vessel Register on 29 November 1994, VIRGINIA was scheduled to enter the Navy's Nuclear-Powered Surface Ship and Submarine Recycling Program on 31 March 1999. Her scrapping was reported complete on 21 Apr 2000.