Evidence
10 evidence entries recorded; each entry has a stable permalink (#ev-1 … #ev-10).
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[1]DANFS, Callaghan II (DDG-994), Naval History and Heritage Command (live NHHC URL returns 404; Wayback capture 2021-03-21) [nhhc_danfs]
- Locator
- DANFS entry 'Callaghan II (DDG-994)', specifications block and ship narrative (sections II)
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- DANFS record for this hull: laid down 23 October 1978 at Pascagoula, Miss., by Ingalls Shipbuilding Division of Litton Industries for the government of Iran as Daryush (DD-994); Iran cancelled the contract 31 March 1979 in mid-construction; Congress authorized special funding to purchase the ship and her three sisters for the U.S. Navy; renamed Callaghan and reclassified DDG-994 on 8 August 1979; launched 1 December 1979; christened 19 January 1980 by Mrs. Sharon Callaghan Giacone (granddaughter of namesake RADM Daniel J. Callaghan), with Mrs. Barbara Callaghan Pfeil and Mrs. Ann Callaghan Weindorf as Matrons of Honor; commissioned 29 August 1981, Cmdr. John T. Hood in command. Service: Pacific Fleet, homeport San Diego; KAL-007 recovery operations Sea of Japan Sep-Nov 1983 (Meritorious Unit Commendation); Earnest Will escort Persian Gulf 1988-89 (Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal); Iraq MIO 1993-94 and 1995-97 deployments; March 1996 Taiwan Strait contingency diversion. Yard periods documented: Ingalls drydock Aug 1981 and PSA Jan-Jun 1982; San Diego SRAs 1984, Feb-May 1986, Jan-Mar 1988 (Southwest Marine); one-year New Threat Upgrade overhaul at Long Beach Naval Shipyard 18 Sep 1989-Oct 1990; SRA Pacific Ship Repair San Diego Sep-Dec 1991; SIMA availabilities 1993; DSRA at NASSCO San Diego Jun-Dec 1994 incl. drydock 10 Jun-6 Aug; intermediate availability Jun 1996; restricted availability Jan-13 Mar 1998. Decommissioned, stricken from the NVR, and transferred to NISMF Bremerton, Wash., 31 March 1998; sold 30 May 2003 through the Security Assistance Program to the Republic of China (Taiwan), initially renamed Ming Teh; after refit/overhaul at Detyens Shipyard, Charleston, S.C., sailed for Taiwan November 2005; commissioned ROCN as ROCS Su Ao (DDG-1802) 17 December 2005, active as of October 2017.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-28
- Study period
- 1978-2017
- Population
- Ingalls/Litton construction trades 1978-81; USN crew (design complement 330) 1981-98; Long Beach Naval Shipyard workers 1989-90; NISMF Bremerton 1998-2003; Detyens Shipyards reactivation workforce 2003-05; ROCN crew 2005-present
- Limitations
- DANFS documents specifications, construction, operational history, yard periods, and disposition - not materials or asbestos content. The live NHHC page returned 404 on 2026-09-28; the 2021-03-21 Wayback capture is cited (NHHC link rot consistent with Batch-01 finding). Wikipedia's narrative text reproduces portions of this DANFS entry verbatim.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-callaghan-dd994-01
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[2]Naval Vessel Register, CALLAGHAN (DDG 994) ex-DD 994, NAVSEA/NAVSHIPSO record (live page does not render detail table; Wayback capture 2020-12-05, record last updated 11/08/2004) [other_primary]
- Locator
- NVR ship detail page DDG-994: vessel status, milestone dates, physical characteristics, program characteristics tables
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Official NVR record for this hull: CALLAGHAN (DDG 994), ex-DD 994, guided missile destroyer, class DDG 993, UIC 21437. Status: 'Disposed of through the Security Assistance Program (SAP), transferred, cash sale, ex-US fleet hull foreign military sale case number assigned,' status changed 05/30/2003; custodian: TAIWAN. Milestones: award 03/23/1978; keel 10/23/1978; launch 12/01/1979; delivery 07/06/1981; commission 08/29/1981; decommission 03/31/1998; stricken 03/31/1998. Characteristics: 563 ft overall (529 wl); 55 ft beam; 33 ft max navigational draft; 7,368 tons light / 9,829 tons full displacement; steel hull, aluminum superstructure; 2 propellers; propulsion type gas turbines; accommodations 20 officers / 318 enlisted.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-28
- Study period
- 1978-2004
- Population
- USN crew 1981-98; recipients of transferred hull (ROCN)
- Limitations
- NVR is the official inventory record of milestones, status, and characteristics - it does not document materials or asbestos content. 'ex-DD 994' confirms the canonical designation correction (DD-994 to DDG-994).
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-callaghan-dd994-02
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[3]GAO HRD-80-2 (B-163375), 'Navy's Efforts to Protect Workers From Asbestos Exposure,' 18 October 1979 - including CNO enclosure Ser 4542/318054 of 5 Jan 1979, 'List of U.S. Navy Ships Delivered Since 1973 or Under Construction (Ship Class, Name and Hull Number and Status of Thermal Insulation)' [gao]
- Locator
- HRD-80-2: 'Navy's Policy on Use of Asbestos' section; Enclosure I attachment table 'DESTROYER - DD' (DD-963 through DD-992 rows); Enclosure II insulation-weight table; Navy letters of 5 Jan and 8 Feb 1979
- Finding type
- gov_survey
- Finding
- Contemporaneous government inventory excluding this hull: the Navy's 5 January 1979 enclosure to GAO lists ships delivered since 1973 or under construction with thermal-insulation asbestos status. The destroyer list runs DD-963 through DD-992 (Spruance class); hulls 993-996 - the four Iranian-contract ships that became the Kidd class, including this vessel - do not appear, because they were FMS contract hulls, not U.S. Navy ships, at compilation. Report body states the Navy eliminated asbestos thermal insulation via NAVSEAINST 5100.2 (24 Oct 1975) after specifications removed asbestos as acceptable insulation material, but 'some ships were delivered with asbestos insulation as late as May 1978'; the Navy's letter also states 'all ships presently in service contain some quantity of asbestos' - gaskets, pipe hanger liners, deck tile, galley equipment, electric cabling, brake/clutch linings - applications lacking qualified asbestos-free substitutes as of 1979. Enclosure II (8 Feb 1979) estimates destroyer-class installed thermal insulation at 87,634 lbs.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- negative_finding
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-28
- Study period
- 1973-1979
- Population
- Navy shipbuilding and shipyard workers generally
- Limitations
- The hull list was compiled before this ship's U.S. acquisition (redesignated DDG-994 on 8 Aug 1979) - absence from the inventory is an FMS-contract artifact, NOT a finding about the ship's materials. The 1975 policy change predates this keel (Oct 1978) by three years, supporting an era inference that thermal insulation was specified asbestos-free, but the report does not state this hull's actual insulation content; residual non-insulation asbestos applications (gaskets, packing, pads, deck tile) were fleetwide per the Navy letter. gao.gov returned HTTP 403 to automated fetch; Wayback PDF (2022-10-28 capture) used for full text.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-callaghan-dd994-03
-
[4]GAO HRD-80-2, 'Navy's Efforts to Protect Workers From Asbestos Exposure,' 18 Oct 1979 - Long Beach Naval Shipyard fieldwork findings [gao]
- Locator
- HRD-80-2 'Efforts to Protect Shipyard Workers' section, Long Beach Naval Shipyard findings (B-163375, pp. 4-5 of report body)
- Finding type
- gov_survey
- Finding
- Yard-level documentation at the site of this hull's largest overhaul: GAO reviewed asbestos controls at Long Beach and Norfolk Naval Shipyards. At Long Beach, the industrial hygienist's dust samples aboard two ships contained asbestos dust (required cleanup not done properly); exposed asbestos was found on pipe ends in one ship's fire room; asbestos fibers remained on stripped pipes; and logbook entries by the yard's asbestos inspector showed program violations occurred frequently, with possible exposure of unprotected workers. GAO concluded both shipyards had comprehensive programs that should provide adequate protection if properly implemented, but the Navy needed to do more on implementation. Callaghan underwent a one-year New Threat Upgrade overhaul at Long Beach Naval Shipyard from 18 September 1989 to October 1990.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-28
- Study period
- 1979 (fieldwork); 1989-1990 (Callaghan overhaul)
- Population
- Long Beach Naval Shipyard workers (1979 fieldwork); analog for Callaghan overhaul workforce 1989-90
- Limitations
- Yard-level 1979 findings, a decade before this hull's 1989-90 availability; establishes the yard's asbestos control posture, not asbestos aboard this ship or exposure during her overhaul. No hull-specific survey, work package, or exposure record from the NTU overhaul is public.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-callaghan-dd994-04
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[5]Congressional Research Service RL30957, 'Taiwan: Major U.S. Arms Sales Since 1990' (FAS mirror); DSCA section 36(b) congressional notification of 21 November 2002 [other_primary]
- Locator
- CRS RL30957 'Kidd-Class Destroyers' section; DSCA notification text as reproduced in the globalsecurity.org archive of the 21 Nov 2002 DSCA release
- Finding type
- regulatory
- Finding
- Transfer authorization record for this hull: on 24 April 2001 President Bush approved the sale of four decommissioned Kidd-class destroyers to Taiwan (considered as Excess Defense Articles). On 21 November 2002 DSCA notified Congress of a proposed FMS to TECRO of 4 Kidd-class guided missile destroyers, 248 SM-2 Block IIIA Standard missiles, 32 RGM-84L Block II Harpoon missiles, shipyard/port support services and 'cold ship' turnover work to make the ships 'Safe to Steam' - estimated cost $875 million. Taiwan's legislature released funding 30 May 2003 after negotiating a ~15% price reduction; the U.S. Navy began reactivation July 2003. First two ships (ex-Scott Kee Lung and ex-Callaghan Su Ao) transferred at a Charleston, S.C., ceremony 29 October 2005; final two 25 August 2006.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-28
- Study period
- 2001-2006
- Population
- Reactivation workforce (VSE/BAV, Detyens Shipyards, subcontractors); ROCN receiving crews
- Limitations
- Documents the FMS/EDA transaction chain for the four Kidd-class hulls including DDG-994 - not asbestos content. Reactivation scope ('cold ship turnover,' 'Safe to Steam') does not enumerate hazardous-materials work. CRS is an official congressional research product cited via the Federation of American Scientists mirror.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-callaghan-dd994-05
-
[6]VSE Corporation press release (BAV Division), 'VSE/BAV Completes Reactivation of Ex-Kidd Class Guided Missile Destroyers,' Alexandria VA, 21 September 2006 (Library and Archives Canada electronic collection capture) [other_primary]
- Locator
- VSE/BAV release via Seawaves Naval News repost preserved at epe.lac-bac.gc.ca (Library and Archives Canada), 2006-09-27 issue
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Contractor record of this hull's reactivation yard period: VSE/BAV managed reactivation of the four ex-Kidd-class destroyers - USS Kidd (DDG-993), USS Scott (DDG-995), USS Callaghan (DDG-994), USS Chandler (DDG-996) - at Charleston, South Carolina, as prime contractor to NAVSEA under the FMS program. More than 14,600 industrial work items and 168,300 man-days across the program; scope included replacing two sonar dome rubber windows, upgrading all four SQS-53A sonars to SQS-53D, modernizing NTU systems for SM-2 Block IIIA, replacing 11 waste-heat boilers, reactivating all 28 propulsion/electrical gas turbines, and installing CIWS mounts. Ships had been stored at NISMF Philadelphia and Bremerton since late-1990s decommissionings. Ex-Callaghan (Su Ao) and ex-Scott (Kee Lung) departed Charleston 1 November 2005; remaining pair ~10 months later.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- archival_lead
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-28
- Study period
- 2003-2006
- Population
- VSE/BAV and subcontractor industrial workforce, Charleston 2003-2006
- Limitations
- Contractor press release naming this hull - documents the reactivation program's existence and mechanical scope, but the itemized work list does not mention asbestos abatement; whether ACM was present and removed is not stated. Not a government record; underlying NAVSEA work packages are the archival lead. Individual hull storage site (Philadelphia vs. Bremerton) is unresolved in the release - DANFS records this hull at Bremerton.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-callaghan-dd994-06
-
[7]Congressional Record, Senate Concurrent Resolution 22 debate - Sen. Edmund Muskie on FY1979 supplemental funding for four Iranian-order destroyers at Litton/Ingalls (Edmund S. Muskie Archives, Bates College) [other_primary]
- Locator
- Muskie Papers, SCR 22 Iranian Ships file (1979), Bates College abacus.bates.edu
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Contemporaneous congressional record of this hull's acquisition: Senator Muskie's floor remarks document the FY1979 supplemental debate over ~$1.3 billion in budget authority 'for the U.S. Navy to purchase four ships that had been ordered by the Shah of Iran back in 1974,' then under construction at the Litton/Ingalls shipyard in Mississippi. Establishes the funding mechanism by which the four hulls - including this ship - were acquired by the U.S. Navy after Iran's cancellation, consistent with DANFS's 'Congress authorized special funding to purchase the ship and her three sisters.'
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-28
- Study period
- 1979
- Population
- Litton/Ingalls construction workforce
- Limitations
- Debate transcript documents the funding controversy and ship count; it does not name individual hull numbers or address materials. Verbatim congressional record text hosted on the Muskie Archives digital collection (Bates College).
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-callaghan-dd994-07
-
[8]Federal Register, DoD/DSCA 36(b)(1) Arms Sales Notification (Transmittal 17-XX), TECRO - AN/SLQ-32(V)3 upgrade for 'four (4) ex-KIDD Class (now KEELUNG Class) destroyers,' report delivered to Congress 29 June 2017 [federal_register]
- Locator
- Federal Register 36(b)(1) notice, policy-justification text (thefederalregister.org PDF mirror of FR doc. 2017-15483)
- Finding type
- regulatory
- Finding
- Post-transfer official record confirming this hull's ROCN service: a 2017 DSCA 36(b)(1) notification for an AN/SLQ-32(V)3 electronic-warfare upgrade 'in support of four (4) ex-KIDD Class (now KEELUNG Class) destroyers' - the class set that includes ex-Callaghan/ROCS Su Ao (DDG-1802). Confirms the four ex-Kidd hulls remained operational ROCN assets as of 2017.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-28
- Study period
- 2017
- Population
- ROCN crews
- Limitations
- Class-level naming (ex-KIDD/KEELUNG class) rather than hull-specific; documents continued ROCN service only. No asbestos or materials content. Later scrapping/disposition of ROCN hulls is outside this record's scope.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-callaghan-dd994-08
-
[9]CourtListener v4 authenticated searches, 2026-09-28 [court_record]
- Locator
- CourtListener API v4: search type=o query '"USS Callaghan" asbestos' (count=0); search type=r query '"USS Callaghan"' (count=0, document_count=0); blocked queries in search_ledger
- Finding type
- litigation_documented
- Finding
- Litigation sweep for this hull: authenticated CourtListener queries returned 0 results on two completed searches - type=o (opinions) '"USS Callaghan" asbestos' count=0, and type=r (RECAP dockets) '"USS Callaghan"' count=0 with document_count=0. Bare hull-number queries ('DDG-994', 'DD-994') and the unqualified 'Callaghan'+asbestos query were repeatedly blocked by the fleet-wide request pacer (hourly budget exhausted); all attempts logged in the search_ledger. No qualifying asbestos litigation naming DDG-994 was located in the completed searches.
- Verification
- partial
- Role
- negative_finding
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-28
- Study period
- 2026-09-28
- Limitations
- Negative finding bounded to the completed queries: no published opinion pairs 'USS Callaghan' with asbestos, and no RECAP docket is indexed under 'USS Callaghan.' Bare-hull-number and surname queries did not complete - residual risk is unindexed filings or dockets where the ship is named only in attachment text. A same-name caveat applies: 'USS Callaghan' litigation hits, if found later, must be screened against DD-792 (Fletcher class, sunk 1945), whose WWII service window is the plausible referent for wartime-era exposure claims.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-callaghan-dd994-09
-
[10]NARA U.S. Navy Deck Logs program page (RG 24) + NHHC ship command-operation reports collection + NARA Still Pictures (DN-SN/DN-SC photo series cited in DANFS captions) [other_primary]
- Locator
- archives.gov deck-log program page; NHHC command-operation-reports collection (no Callaghan DDG-994 report confirmed digitized); NARA Still Pictures Division, College Park
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Archival leads for hull-level materials documentation not retrieved this batch: (1) NARA deck logs for DDG-994 (1981-1998) - deck logs of this era are partially digitized and partially closed; textual reference at Archives II, College Park; (2) NHHC command-operation reports for Callaghan (DDG-994) under OPNAVINST 5750.12 submissions; (3) NARA Still Pictures holds the ship's official photographs (DN-SN-82-00662, DN-SC-02396, DN-SN-89-03545, DN-SC-87-11566, DN-ST-86-01373 per DANFS captions); (4) NISMF Bremerton inactivation hazmat/material assessment and NAVSEA FMS transfer files for the 2003 sale; (5) NAVSEA/VSE reactivation work packages for the Charleston availabilities (14,600 work items documented programmatically only).
- Verification
- unverified
- Role
- archival_lead
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-28
- Study period
- 1981-2006 (records); retrieval pending
- Limitations
- Leads only - none retrieved. Deck logs and command histories document events, not typically asbestos inventories; the inactivation hazmat assessment and reactivation work packages are the highest-value leads for hull-level ACM.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-callaghan-dd994-10