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. . . R-05-01 A RESOLUTION IN SUPPORT OF RETAINING THE USS JOHN F. KENNEDY AS A COMMISSIONED AIRCRAFT CARRIER. WHEREAS, the Navy has need of maintaining twelve aircraft carriers around the world for strategic operations; and WHEREAS, carriers serve not only a strategic military role but also a humanitarian role, as recently evidenced by the deployment of the USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN-22) to help with relief efforts in the Sri Lanka area; and WHEREAS, decommissioning is presently being considered for the carrier USS John F. Kennedy (CV 67), commonly known as "Big John"; and WHEREAS, the Kennedy and its crew form the centerpiece of a carrier strike group, which includes an air wing, two cruisers, four destroyers, two attack submarines, and a fast combat support ship; and WHEREAS, the Kennedy, named for the 35th President of the United States, was built in the region, at Newport News Shipyard, and was christened in 1967 by former President Kennedy's daughter Caroline, then age nine; and WHEREAS, in the course of its legendary career, the Kennedy has won many awards, including Battle Efficiency, Golden Anchor, Battle "E," Silver Anchor, Carrier of the New Millenium, the Battenberg Cup for being the overall best ship in the Atlantic Fleet, and a 2002 Meritorious Unit Citation; and WHEREAS, the Kennedy's seventeenth and most recent deployment was in 2002, to the North Arabian Sea in support of Operation Enduring Freedom, where the ship and its air wing dropped more than 64,000 pounds of ordnance on Taliban and al Qaeda targets, and its air wing flew day and night missions over Afghanistan, supporting American and coalition Forces on the ground with close air support; and WHEREAS, a major overhaul of the Kennedy has been plarmed at Norfolk Naval Shipyard, with an estimated cost of approximately $350,000,000, and this overhaul will have a significant effect on the regional economy and on defense industry contractors whose long-term stability is essential to the national defense; and WHEREAS, decommissioning the Kennedy would be harmful to the nation, the region, the City of Portsmouth, the global war on terrorism, and the cause offreedom throughout the world; NOW, THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that the Council ofthe City of Portsmouth, Virginia, hereby supports the continued operation and requirement for the USS John F. Kennedy (CV -67) to remain a commissioned aircraft carrier in the service of the United States Navy.