Evidence
10 evidence entries recorded; each entry has a stable permalink (#ev-1 … #ev-10).
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[1]CourtListener opinion search: 'USS Charger' [court_record]
- Finding type
- litigation_documented
- Finding
- CourtListener opinion search 'USS Charger' returned 6 result(s) (2026-10-07); individual records not reviewed
- Verification
- unverified
- Role
- archival_lead
- Documentation level
- context_only
- Limitations
- hit count only — underlying dockets/opinions not individually reviewed; name query may match same-named vessels
- Evidence ID
- uss-charger-cve30-cl-name-opinion
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[2]CourtListener docket search: 'USS Charger' [court_record]
- Finding type
- litigation_documented
- Finding
- CourtListener docket search 'USS Charger' returned 468 result(s) (2026-10-07); individual records not reviewed
- Verification
- unverified
- Role
- archival_lead
- Documentation level
- context_only
- Limitations
- hit count only — underlying dockets/opinions not individually reviewed; name query may match same-named vessels
- Evidence ID
- uss-charger-cve30-cl-name-docket
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[3]CourtListener opinion search: 'CVE-30' [court_record]
- Finding type
- litigation_documented
- Finding
- CourtListener opinion search 'CVE-30' returned 320 result(s) (2026-10-07); individual records not reviewed
- Verification
- unverified
- Role
- archival_lead
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Limitations
- hit count only — underlying dockets/opinions not individually reviewed
- Evidence ID
- uss-charger-cve30-cl-hull-opinion
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[4]CourtListener docket search: 'CVE-30' [court_record]
- Finding type
- litigation_documented
- Finding
- CourtListener docket search 'CVE-30' returned 7044 result(s) (2026-10-07); individual records not reviewed
- Verification
- unverified
- Role
- archival_lead
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Limitations
- hit count only — underlying dockets/opinions not individually reviewed
- Evidence ID
- uss-charger-cve30-cl-hull-docket
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[5]DANFS, Charger (CVE-30) entry - Naval History and Heritage Command (live URL 404s on 2026-09-19; 2021-12-03 Wayback capture of the official page; verbatim transcription also at ibiblio/HyperWar cve30.html) [nhhc_danfs]
- Locator
- DANFS spec block and narrative (Charger entry), construction paragraph and service/fate paragraphs
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- DANFS documents: Charger (AVG-30) was launched 1 March 1941 by Sun Shipbuilding and Drydock Co., Chester, Pa., as 'Rio La Plata' (ibiblio transcription reads 'Rio la Playa'; MC/yard records give Rio de la Plata), sponsored by Mrs. F. Espil; commissioned as HMS Charger (BAVG-4), Capt. George Abel-Smith RN in command; transferred to the U.S. Navy 4 October 1941; reclassified AVG-30 on 24 January 1942; commissioned 3 March 1942, Capt. T. L. Sprague in command; reported to the Atlantic Fleet. Her area of operations throughout the war was Chesapeake Bay, 'the basic task of training pilots' and ships' crews in carrier operations' feeding the escort-carrier groups fighting Atlantic submarines. Reclassified ACV-30 on 20 August 1942 and CVE-30 on 15 July 1943; left Chesapeake Bay only for two ferry voyages (Bermuda, October 1942; Guantanamo Bay, September 1945). Decommissioned at New York 15 March 1946; sold 30 January 1947. Spec block: dp. 8,000; l. 492'; b. 69'6"; cpl. 856; class 'Charger.'
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-19
- Study period
- 1940-1947
- Population
- Crew (~856 per spec block) plus embarked training squadrons and Fleet Air Arm trainees
- Limitations
- Authoritative Navy history for milestones and service; contains no insulation, material, or asbestos information. The merchant-name spelling 'Rio La Plata'/'Rio la Playa' conflicts with Maritime Commission and Sun yard records (Rio de la Plata) - flagged in gaps. Gives no stricken date (NavSource supplies 28 March 1946) and does not give the 2 October 1941 RN commissioning date that NavSource/RN accounts supply. Live history.navy.mil URL 404s; citation is the 2021 Wayback capture of the official page.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-charger-cve30-01
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[6]NavSource Online, Escort Carrier Photo Archive, USS Charger (BAVG-4 / HMS Charger D27 / AVG-30 / ACV-30 / CVE-30) - building data, stricken citation, war-diary-informed photo captions; shipbuildinghistory.com Sun yard table row 188; navypedia technical block [other_primary]
- Locator
- NavSource CVE-30 archive page (Operational/Building Data, CO list, photo captions); shipbuildinghistory.com Sun table row 188; navypedia Charger technical data
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Compiled records document: Maritime Commission hull 61, type C3-P&C passenger/cargo ship Rio de la Plata for Moore-McCormack Lines (Sun yard table row 188: keel 19-Jan-40, launch 1-Mar-41, delivery 2-Oct-41, 407 days on ways / 215 in water / 622 total, 9,100 GT; disposition 'Later HMS Charger but returned, to USN as CVE 30, later cruise ship Fairsea 1949, scrapped 1969'). Acquired by the Navy 20 May 1941 (requisition); converted to an aircraft carrier by Newport News Shipbuilding and Drydock Co. in 77 days; commissioned HMS Charger 2 October 1941 (Lt. Cdr (E) R.F. McArt RNR present as RN officer in charge), returned to U.S. Navy two days later for use as a training carrier 'principally for the use of the British trainees.' Sole ship of the Charger class per NavSource header. Stricken 28 March 1946 (Navy Dept. Bulletin 46-714, p.12); sold 30 January 1947; merchant Fairsea (1949); disabled by engine-room fire January 1969 in the Pacific; scrapped La Spezia 1969 - 'lack of spare parts for her diesel engines' driving the disposal decision. Machinery per navypedia: 2 Sun-Doxford diesels, 1 shaft, 8,500 hp, 16.5 kts; complement 856. NavSource photo captions quote her war diary (e.g., Norfolk availability 7-19 May 1942) and deck log (14 August 1943 F6F ramp strike), confirming wartime Norfolk Navy Yard availabilities.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-19
- Study period
- 1939-1969
- Population
- Crew (~856) plus training air groups; Sun construction trades (Chester 1940-41); Newport News conversion and Norfolk Navy Yard availability workforces; Fairsea passengers/crew (1949-69)
- Limitations
- Compiled secondary archives consistent with DANFS on all overlapping facts; conversion, availabilities, and post-Navy events are documented as events, not work packages - insulation scope unrecorded. navsource.org did not resolve via DNS on the research machine 2026-09-19; content verified through the navsource.net mirror and search-index captures of the same page. The 1969 fire date reads 29 January here vs 23 January in Australian merchant accounts - flagged in gaps. No insulation/asbestos content.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-charger-cve30-02
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[7]U.S. Navy, Bureau of Ships Technical Manual, NAVSHIPS 250-000, Chapter 39 'Thermal Insulation' (1960, page date 15 April 1959) - specification-level document for Navy shipboard insulation materials [other_primary]
- Locator
- BuShips TM ch.39, sections 39-11 through 39-13 (materials)
- Finding type
- asbestos_application
- Finding
- The 1960 BuShips Technical Manual's insulation chapter enumerates the asbestos material suite standard to Navy ships of this hull's construction era: MIL-I-2781 pipe covering including 85% magnesia 'formed from a combination of 85 percent magnesium carbonate with about 15 percent asbestos fiber' and a class 'formed from a uniform mixture of amosite asbestos fibers'; roll asbestos felt MIL-I-15091; asbestos cloth/tape SS-C-466 (80-95% chrysotile) as lagging; asbestos millboard HH-M-351; asbestos finishing cement; molded asbestos block for high-temperature service. This hull's two Sun-Doxford diesel engines, exhaust uptakes, ship's-service piping, and the accommodation/hangar spaces built into the merchant hull are the equipment and compartment classes these specifications address; her keel-to-commissioning window (1940-41 merchant, 1941 conversion) sits inside the asbestos-specification era.
- Verification
- inferred
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-19
- Study period
- 1960 (manual); describes era-standard specifications
- Population
- Sun Ship construction trades (Chester, 1940-41); Newport News conversion workforce (1941); crew (1942-46); Genoa and Sitmar refit workforces (1949-57)
- Limitations
- Specification-level documentation of materials the Navy specified, not a ship-specific installation record - establishes the era insulation suite, not what was installed on this hull. Note the machinery difference: unlike the steam-turbine Bogue-class CVEs, this hull is diesel-powered, so the boiler/turbine-lagging applications emphasized in steam-plant treatments apply here only to the extent the same materials covered piping, exhaust, and compartment insulation. The 1941 NNS conversion, wartime Norfolk availabilities, the 1949 Genoa migrant rebuild, the 1957 refit, and the 1953/1969 fire repairs are material-disturbance events whose insulation scope is undocumented. Retrieved PDF is a scan hosted in the Garlock bankruptcy Daubert-appendix repository; the document itself is the government manual (verified legible in prior batch work).
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-charger-cve30-03
-
[8]NARA Record Group 19 (Bureau of Ships), file unit 'Plans for the Escort Carrier USS Charger (CVE-30), 1789-1967' - 1944 Booklet of General Plans prepared by Norfolk Navy Yard (BUSHIPS no. 581745, NNK no. 49893; sheets marked 'Sheet No. 13 of 14' and 'Sheet No. 14 of 14'; one drawing NAID 167816575, dated 1942-12-06); partial mirror at archive.org item cve30bogp1944v1 and Wikimedia Commons [other_primary]
- Locator
- archive.org cve30bogp1944v1 (6-page mirror); NARA file unit 'Plans for the Escort Carrier USS Charger (CVE-30)'; NAID 167816575 (Hold, Inner Bottom & General Information, 1942-12-06); general-information block on sheet 14 reviewed at full resolution
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- A ship-specific Booklet of General Plans for CVE-30 survives in the National Archives (RG 19, Bureau of Ships) and is partially digitized: the Internet Archive mirror carries the title sheet/outboard profile, inboard profile and flight deck, bridge/main/second deck, third deck/platforms, and hold/inner-bottom/general-information sheets. Direct review of the general-information sheet (1942-12-06 drawing) found dimensional data (465 ft between perpendiculars / 492 ft overall, 69'-6" moulded breadth), small-boat and life-raft tables, a complement table listing ship and aircraft personnel by category (~1,000 total), and the fire-main 'fire plugs' schedule - but no insulation or material schedule. The full 14-sheet file unit at NARA and the ship's war diary and deck logs (quoted in NavSource captions) remain the unretrieved leads for material callouts.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- archival_lead
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-19
- Study period
- 1942-1944
- Population
- n/a (engineering record)
- Limitations
- Establishes that ship-specific engineering documentation exists and is partially digitized; establishes that the reviewed general-information sheet contains no insulation schedule. Does not establish what the remaining sheets contain, does not establish insulation content or absence aboard, and does not itself document asbestos.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-charger-cve30-04
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[9]John Crane, Inc. v. Jones, 274 Va. 581, 650 S.E.2d 851 (2007); Exxon Mobil Corp. v. Minton, 285 Va. 115, 737 S.E.2d 16 (2013) [court_record]
- Locator
- John Crane v. Jones, 274 Va. 581 (Record No. 062164, decided 2007-09-14); Exxon Mobil v. Minton, 285 Va. 115 (decided 2013-01-10)
- Finding type
- litigation_documented
- Finding
- Two Virginia Supreme Court opinions document asbestos-litigation history at the yard that converted this hull. John Crane v. Jones: an outside machinist at Newport News Shipbuilding & Dry Dock Co. (employed 1963-1967) developed malignant mesothelioma; his estate's verdict against an asbestos-product manufacturer was affirmed under general maritime law. Exxon Mobil v. Minton: a shipfitter/repair supervisor at the same yard (1956-1993) 'regularly exposed to asbestos from asbestos-containing materials as well as from asbestos dust from a dusty worksite' developed mesothelioma; his jury verdict against Exxon was reversed on appeal for insufficient evidence on control/knowledge - a merits-level negative for that plaintiff.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-19
- Study period
- 1956-2013
- Population
- NNS outside machinist and shipfitter/supervisor (mesothelioma)
- Limitations
- Yard-level litigation context only: Jones's tenure (1963-1967) and Minton's (1956-1993) both postdate this hull's 77-day 1941 conversion by two decades or more; neither opinion names this hull or addresses 1941 construction-era conditions; the Minton disposition is a reversal for the plaintiff - a merits-level negative, not affirmative exposure evidence for any vessel.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-charger-cve30-05
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[10]Batch-245 search ledger (this record): DANFS/Wayback/NavSource/shipbuildinghistory/navypedia ship records; NARA RG 19 plans unit review; CourtListener API v4 sweeps by exact name, hull number, and name variants; Australian caselaw Fairsea sweep; NVR check [other_primary]
- Locator
- search_ledger rows sl-uss-charger-cve30-01 through -12
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- No qualifying ship-specific asbestos record located: no asbestos survey, insulation specification, abatement contract, hazmat disclosure, or docketed asbestos case naming USS Charger (BAVG-4/AVG-30/ACV-30/CVE-30), HMS Charger, Rio de la Plata, or Fairsea was found in the public sources searched (see search_ledger). CourtListener opinion and RECAP sweeps returned only name collisions: 'Charger' strings resolve to battery/turbo/Taser/Dodge-charger usages and unrelated dockets (e.g., Juul device-charger exhibits, a Charger Holdings LLC bankruptcy), 'CVE-30' to a criminal docket, and Conte v. The Rio De La Plata, 169 F. Supp. 164 (S.D.N.Y. 1959), aff'd sub nom. Conte v. Flota Mercante del Estado, 277 F.2d 664 (2d Cir. 1960), names a different, Argentine state-fleet vessel - a name collision, not this hull.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- negative_finding
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-19
- Study period
- 2026-09-19
- Limitations
- Absence of a located public record does not prove absence of asbestos aboard - a 1940-41 merchant construction plus 1941 Navy conversion sits inside the asbestos-specification era, and the negative reflects record availability, not hull condition. Does not establish or defeat any claim of exposure or legal eligibility.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-charger-cve30-06