Norfolk Naval Shipyard to Begin Ike DPIA

The aircraft carrier USS Dwight D. Eisenhower (CVN 69) (Ike) entered her new berth at Norfolk Naval Shipyard (NNSY), Sept. 10, to begin a scheduled docking planned incremental availability (DPIA).

Ike departed Naval Station Norfolk in the morning, transited the Elizabeth River and reached NNSY a few hours later. During the “dead-stick” transit, Sailors on the bridge maneuvered the ship while tugboats moved and guided the ship into place for the upcoming dry-dock period at the shipyard.

The ship is slated to spend 14 months at NNSY receiving upgrades and improvements necessary to maintain its optimal running efficiency. Ike will go through both ship’s-force maintenance and contractor work to obtain this goal.

Capt. Stephen T. Koehler, Ike’s commanding officer, said he was looking forward to the shipyard period and the work Ike and her shipyard teammates will do.

The Dwight D. Eisenhower crew has been preparing for the move to NNSY since the middle of August when IKE entered its Smart Start period. Smart Start is a combined NNSY and IKE effort to get the ship ready for its shipyard maintenance period.

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Press Release, September 11, 2013