USS New York

USS
New York

It was built with 24 tons of
scrap steel from the
World
Trade
Center .

It
is the fifth in a new class of warship -
designed for missions that include special
operations against terrorists. It will carry a
crew of 360 sailors and 700 combat-ready Marines
to be delivered ashore by helicopters and
assault craft.

Steel
from the
World
Trade
Center was melted
down in a foundry in
Amite , LA to
cast the ship's bow section. When it was poured
into the molds on Sept 9, 2003, 'those big rough
steelworkers treated it with total reverence,'
recalled Navy Capt. Kevin Wensing, who was
there. 'It was a spiritual moment for everybody
there.'

Junior
Chavers, foundry operations manager, said that
when the trade center steel first arrived, he
touched it with his hand and the 'hair on my
neck stood up.' 'It had a big meaning to it for
all of us,' he said. 'They knocked us down. They
can't keep us down. We're going to be
back.'

The
ship's motto? 'Never Forget'