Evidence
11 evidence entries recorded; each entry has a stable permalink (#ev-1 … #ev-11).
-
[1]research packet 908-packet.md [other_primary]
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Identity packet verdict: VERIFIED
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Evidence ID
- uss-altus-pc568-pkt-908-packet-md
-
[2]DANFS, Altus (PC-568), Vol. I, Part A, p. 229 - construction, wartime service narrative, reserve naming, USAF transfer (verbatim transcription; live NHHC page serves 404 on all candidate URLs) [nhhc_danfs]
- Locator
- DANFS entry 'Altus', Vol. I Part A p. 229 - spec block + full service narrative
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- DANFS record for this hull: 'A city in the state of Oklahoma.' PC-568 laid down 15 September 1941 at Houston, Tex., by the Brown Shipbuilding Co.; launched 25 April 1942; placed in commission at Houston 13 July 1942, Lt. David A. Smith in command. Caribbean Sea Frontier convoy and antisubmarine patrols from Key West and Miami to Caribbean ports (Guantanamo Bay and Havana, Cuba; San Juan, Puerto Rico; Bridgetown, Barbados; Trinidad; Aruba; Curacao). April 1943 reported to Commander, Eastern Sea Frontier, for convoy/antisubmarine patrols New York City-Guantanamo Bay. Departed New York City 25 March 1944 for the United Kingdom; reported to Commander, U.S. Naval Forces Europe; member of the 12th Fleet; prepared for the invasion of France; on 6 June assumed convoy duty in the English Channel and patrol duty along the French coast. Operated in the English Channel through June 1945, then services to American occupation forces in Germany. Sailed from Bremerhaven 4 October, via Plymouth, Ponta del Gada, and Bermuda, arriving Norfolk, Va., 22 October; deactivation preparations begun at Norfolk; sailed 5 January 1946 for Mayport, Fla.; decommissioned 30 April 1946 and laid up in the St. Johns River, Green Cove Springs, Fla. Named Altus in February 1956. Name struck from the Navy list 15 March 1963 and the ship transferred permanently to the custody of the U.S. Air Force. Spec block: dp. 450; l. 174'; b. 23'; dr. 10'; s. 20.2 k.; cpl. 65; a. 1 3-inch, 1 40mm, 3 20mm, 2 dct.; cl. PC-461.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-03
- Study period
- 1941-1963 (entry coverage)
- Population
- Brown Shipbuilding construction trades (1941-42); wartime crew (design complement 65); reserve-fleet caretakers (1946-60)
- Limitations
- Ship-specific history only; DANFS contains no asbestos or material content. The entry ends at the 1963 USAF transfer - the 1960 loan, Philippine Navy service, and loss come from other rows. Live NHHC DANFS page returned 404 on all candidate URLs 2026-10-03; verbatim transcription cited.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-altus-pc568-01
-
[3]NavSource Online: Submarine Chaser Photo Archive, Altus (PC 568) ex-PC-568 - milestone timeline, specifications, propulsion detail, disposition [other_primary]
- Locator
- NavSource 12/010568.htm header timeline block, specifications block, and photo caption (1201056802.jpg)
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- NavSource timeline for this hull: laid down 15 September 1941 at Brown Shipbuilding Co., Houston, TX; launched 25 April 1942; commissioned USS PC-568 13 July 1942 at Houston; decommissioned 30 April 1946 at Mayport, FL and laid up in the Atlantic Reserve Fleet, Florida Group, Green Cove Springs; the Naval Vessel Register of 1 January 1949 lists a plan for decommissioning and placing in reserve as January 1947; named Altus 15 February 1956; loaned to the Air Force in 1960; struck from the Naval Register 15 March 1963 and transferred permanently to the U.S. Air Force; transferred to the Philippines 2 March 1968 and renamed Nueva Viscaya (PS 80); converted to a Fast Attack Craft in 1988; decommissioned 23 June 1990; 'Sank 10 March 1993 during a typhoon at Cebu, Philippines'; sold as scrap to Calixto Enterprises, Philippines. Specifications: 450 t; length 173'8"; beam 23'; draft 10'10"; speed 22 kts.; complement 65; armament one 3-inch/50 dual purpose mount, one 40mm mount, three 20mm, two rocket launchers, four depth charge projectors, two depth charge tracks. Propulsion: two 1,440 bhp Fairbanks Morse 38D8 1/8 diesel engines (Serial Nos. 832267 and 832268), Westinghouse reduction gear, two shafts. Photo caption places the hull 'c. 1945, Aground in the Gulf de Saint-Malo off Grandville, France' (Bob Daly/PC-1181 collection).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-03
- Study period
- 1941-1993
- Population
- Brown Shipbuilding construction trades (1941-42); crew (1942-46); USAF custodial population (1960-68); Philippine Navy crew (1968-90); breakers Calixto Enterprises (post-1990)
- Limitations
- NavSource is a volunteer secondary compilation, not a primary registry - milestones generally track DANFS/NVR but its 'sank 10 March 1993 during a typhoon' conflicts with Typhoon Mike documentation (November 1990) and Navypedia's '13.11.1989' - carried in gaps, and 'St James River' is a transcription error for the St. Johns River at Green Cove Springs. Contains no asbestos content. The grounding caption is a photographic record only, not an incident report.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-altus-pc568-02
-
[4]National Archives, Cartographic Ship Plan Index - ALTUS, PC-568, RG 19 (Bureau of Ships), Microfilm series, NAID 175668085 [other_primary]
- Locator
- archives.gov Ship Plan Index, alphabetical entry ALTUS / PC-568; NAID link https://catalog.archives.gov/id/175668085 (JS-rendered)
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- The NARA Cartographic Ship Plan Index lists ALTUS, PC-568 under Record Group 19 (Bureau of Ships) in the Microfilm series as NAID 175668085 - a per-hull ship-plan microfilm holding that is the archival lead for hull-level material specifications. The class plan for PC-461 (NAID 175665910) and sister Riverhead PC-567 (NAID 175670475) are also indexed.
- Verification
- partial
- Role
- archival_lead
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-03
- Study period
- index verified live 2026-10-03
- Limitations
- Archival lead only: the index entry confirms a plan microfilm exists in RG 19; the microfilm content has not been retrieved or reviewed, and catalog.archives.gov is JS-rendered and could not be fetched to verify the record page directly. Whether the plans carry any insulation/material schedule is unknown.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-altus-pc568-03
-
[5]The Maritime Review (Philippines), 'Our Submarine Chasers' (Mark R Condeno, 24 March 2023) - Philippine Navy SC-173 type (PC-461 class) service history [reputable_press]
- Locator
- Maritime Review 'Our Submarine Chasers', SC-173 type list and 'Commissioning & Decommissionings' section
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Philippine-source corroboration of the hull's second service: RPS Nueva Vizcaya (PS-80) is listed among the nine SC-173-type (PC-461-class) units of the Offshore Patrol; 'RPS Nueva Vizcaya and the second RPS Negros Oriental joining the fleet on 02-March-1968'; the two were 'the last to be decommissioned of the class in 1990.' Source cites Jane's Fighting Ships 1977-78, Conway's 1947-1995, and official Philippine Navy histories; author is a PEFTOK museum curator and former research officer of the Office of the Naval Historian, Philippine Navy.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-03
- Study period
- 1968-1990
- Population
- Philippine Navy crew, Offshore Patrol (1968-1990)
- Limitations
- Corroborates the 2 March 1968 transfer and the 1990 decommissioning window but gives no day-level loss date; spells the name correctly 'Nueva Vizcaya' (Philippine province) where NavSource prints 'Viscaya.' Contains no asbestos content. The same 02-March-1968 passage bundles Nueva Vizcaya with the ex-Cambodian Negros Oriental II - read per the source list, the 1968 date attaches to Nueva Vizcaya.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-altus-pc568-04
-
[6]UN DRO situation reports, Philippines Typhoon Mike (Ruping), Nov 1990, via ReliefWeb (sitrep 1, 15 Nov 1990); UPI, 'Super typhoon leaves 86 dead in Philippines' (14 November 1990); Los Angeles Times, 'Central Philippines Struck by Typhoon; 40 Die, 19 Ships Sink' (14 November 1990) [reputable_press]
- Locator
- reliefweb.int UNDRO 90/1770 situation report 1 (15 Nov 1990, '10 vessels, incl. 3 navy craft' line); UPI 1990-11-14 (17 of 19 sunken ships at Cebu port - page live, 403 to automated fetch); LA Times 1990-11-14 (19 ships, 17 at Cebu - verified live)
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Contemporaneous reporting documents that Typhoon Mike (local name Ruping) crossed Cebu on 12-13 November 1990 and sank scores of vessels in Cebu harbor - UPI: 'at least 17 of 19 ships reported to have sunk during the storm went under at the Cebu port when their moorings snapped'; LA Times: 'Nineteen ships sank in the storm, including 17 in Cebu harbor'; the UN DRO report of 15 November lists '10 vessels, incl. 3 navy craft and 1 cargo ship, reported sunk' with figures still rising. The PC-461-class article's day-level claim that ex-PC-568 (by then decommissioned RPS Nueva Vizcaya, PS-80) sank 12 November 1990 in the Port of Cebu, struck by a ship set adrift, is consistent with this documented event; NavSource's '10 March 1993 during a typhoon' matches no recorded Cebu typhoon (March is outside the Philippine typhoon season), and Navypedia's '13.11.1989' reads as a year-transcription of the same November loss.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- correction
- Documentation level
- context_only
- Accessed
- 2026-10-03
- Study period
- 1990-11-12 - 1990-11-14
- Population
- Any caretakers/watch aboard the laid-up craft; Cebu harbor population during Typhoon Mike
- Limitations
- The contemporaneous press does not name this hull - it documents the Typhoon Mike Cebu harbor losses only; the day-level attribution (12 November 1990, struck by an adrift ship) comes from secondary class-article sourcing, not a primary casualty record. This row corrects/qualifies NavSource's '10 March 1993' - the November 1990 loss is the better-supported date, but the conflict is unresolved rather than settled.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-altus-pc568-05
-
[7]Era inference built on: NavSource specifications block (two Fairbanks Morse 38D8 1/8 diesels, 1,440 bhp each, Westinghouse reduction gear, two shafts - diesel plant, no steam); DANFS spec block (PC-461 class); shipbuildinghistory / USNI production record (12 PC-461-class units at Brown Shipbuilding, Houston) [other_primary]
- Locator
- NavSource specifications block; DANFS spec block; shipbuildinghistory.com PC-461 production list; USNI Naval History June 2025
- Finding type
- asbestos_application
- Finding
- A diesel-powered submarine chaser built 1941-42 sits inside the Navy's documented asbestos-use era (see ev-07). Era-standard asbestos applications aboard a diesel patrol craft of this type and period were engine and exhaust-system lagging, thermal insulation in machinery spaces, machinery gaskets, valve packing, and electrical insulation. As a diesel craft she carried no steam plant - the boiler/turbine lagging pathway of steam vessels does not apply.
- Verification
- inferred
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-10-03
- Study period
- 1941-1993
- Population
- Brown Shipbuilding construction trades (1941-42); crew (1942-46); USAF and PN operating/maintenance populations (1960-90); breakers (post-1990)
- Limitations
- Class/era inference only - no hull-specific insulation survey, material list, or work package located for PC-568. Names era-standard applications, not confirmed installed materials. No quantity. Product names are normalized era terms; no manufacturer attribution for this hull.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-altus-pc568-06
-
[8]GAO, Navy Efforts To Protect Workers From Asbestos Exposure, HRD-80-2 (Oct 18, 1979) [gao]
- Locator
- GAO product page HRD-80-2 (full text blocked, HTTP 403)
- Finding type
- gov_survey
- Finding
- GAO documented that the Navy used asbestos insulation extensively aboard ships and did not begin substituting alternative insulation materials until the early 1970s - spanning this hull's entire construction (1941-42) and U.S. Navy service era (1942-46).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-10-03
- Study period
- 1979
- Population
- Navy shipyard workers; asbestos program review
- Limitations
- Program-level documentation; supports era context only, not any fact specific to this hull. Full text not retrieved (gao.gov blocks automated fetch, HTTP 403, confirmed 2026-10-03) - content via product-page description.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-altus-pc568-07
-
[9]U.S. Naval Institute, Naval History magazine, 'The Brown Shipbuilding Company's Rise During World War II' (Eric Pearson, June 2025) [reputable_press]
- Locator
- USNI Naval History June 2025 feature article (full text via firecrawl; direct fetch returns 403)
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Yard context for this hull's builder: Brown Shipbuilding (Brown & Root subsidiary) was an emergency wartime yard on Greens Bayou at the Houston Ship Channel that grew to 'more than 25,000 workers' at peak from late 1942; built 12 PC-461-class submarine chasers (of which PC-568 is one per DANFS/NavSource), 61 destroyer escorts, 32 Landing Craft Infantry, and 254 Landing Ship Medium; earned the Army-Navy 'E' production award December 1942; the yard passed to Todd Shipyards after the war.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-10-03
- Study period
- 1941-1945
- Population
- Brown Shipbuilding workforce, peak >25,000 (1942-45)
- Limitations
- Yard history only - the article documents the builder's wartime scale and production but names no individual hull and contains no asbestos or industrial-hygiene content. It does not document materials aboard PC-568 or any Brown-built hull; asbestos at the yard is unattributed-era inference only.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-altus-pc568-08
-
[10]uboat.net Allied Warships of WWII, USS PC-568 (PC-568) - builder, order date, command chronology [other_primary]
- Locator
- uboat.net warship page 8545 (PC-568), history table + 'Commands listed' block
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- uboat.net record for this hull: ordered 1 April 1941; built by Brown Shipbuilding Co., Houston; laid down 15 September 1941; launched 25 April 1942; commissioned 13 July 1942; end service 30 April 1946; stricken 15 March 1963; transferred to the Philippines 2 March 1968 renamed Nueva Viscaya. Command chronology: Lt. David Albert Smith, USNR (13 Jul 1942 - early 1943); Lt. Edmund Leavenworth McGibbon, USNR (early 1943 - late 1943); A. W. Walz, USNR (1943 - mid/late 1944); Vernon W. McDaniel, USNR (mid/late 1944 - early 1945); J. H. McSparran, USNR (early 1945 - late 1945).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-03
- Study period
- 1941-1968
- Population
- Wartime commanding officers and crew (1942-46)
- Limitations
- Volunteer-compiled secondary database tracking DANFS/NVR milestones; contains no asbestos content. CO names are USNR reservists per the database - useful for crew-history context, not exposure records.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-altus-pc568-09
-
[11]Batch-7943 search ledger (this record): DANFS transcription; NavSource; NARA ship-plan index; Maritime Review; UPI/LA Times/UNDRO Typhoon Mike reporting; USNI Naval History; uboat.net; GAO product page; NVR (no entry); NHHC (404); secondary web litigation sweep; CourtListener status per search_ledger [other_primary]
- Locator
- search_ledger rows sl-uss-altus-pc568-01 through -13
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- No qualifying ship-specific asbestos record located: no asbestos survey, abatement contract, hazmat disclosure, or verified litigation naming USS Altus / PC-568 / RPS Nueva Vizcaya (PS-80) was found in the public sources searched (see search_ledger). CAVEAT: CourtListener could not be queried this session - the fleet-wide pacing limiter stood down every attempt (5 tries over ~50 minutes) and is logged as blocked in search_ledger, not as a negative result. Secondary web sweeps surfaced no qualifying case; asbestos-listicle pages asserting 'asbestos aboard' without primary sourcing were excluded by source policy.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- negative_finding
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-03
- Study period
- 2026-10-03
- Limitations
- Absence of a located public record does not prove absence of asbestos aboard - era-consistent inference remains reasonable for a 1941-42 diesel combatant but is not ship-proven, and the litigation repository search is a genuine open gap (paced, not run). Deck logs, builder work packages, USAF custodial records, and Philippine maintenance records are undigitized leads. Does not establish or defeat any claim of exposure or legal eligibility.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-altus-pc568-10