Ship Made With WTC Steel Already Broken

NORFOLK -- Less than three months into its operational life, the dock landing ship New York must undergo repairs to replace faulty engine parts, the Navy said.

It's un known how long the Norfolk-based ship will have to stay pierside, Lt. Cmdr. Herbert Josey, a spokesman for Naval Surface Force Atlantic, said Monday.

In a statement about the repairs, the Navy said inspectors discovered the "premature failure" of bearings on the ship's main propulsion diesel engines during a week long , at-sea examination that followed the New York's November commissioning.

Josey said it's unclear how long the repairs will take and how serious the failures are. The ship has four engines; Josey couldn't say how many are affected.

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Officials said Naval Sea Systems Command is working to determine whether the problems on the Northrop Grumman-built New York could also affect other ships in the San Antonio class. Five are operational and four are under construction. The New York, built in Louisiana, is the newest.

The Navy has discovered numerous problems and has overseen millions of dollars of repairs on the first ship in the class, the San Antonio, which took to the sea three years ago.

The New York contains 7 1/2 tons of steel salvaged from the World Trade Center after the Sept. 11 attacks. Its bearings will be repaired by Northrop Grumman and the engine manufacturer under the manufacturer's warranty, the Navy said.

Corinne Reilly, (757) 446-2949, corinne.reilly@pilotonline.com