| In order to look at the ships in the harbour, we took a harbour
cruise. Just across from the landing were two modern Aircraft Carriers.
Nimitz (68) and Ronald Reagan (76) |  |
 | The first half of
the cruise was going south under the Coronado Bridge. Here you can see the
curve down to Coronado. |
| One of the largest ships actually in the naval base was this
Multipurpose amphibious assault carrier. Smaller than the main aircraft
carriers, this one mainly has helicopters. I wasn't sure if the bit at the
front was a ski jump, in which case it probably also carries Harriers. I
think this is USS Bataan although that is supposed to be in Norfolk VA. The
guide said it was USS Boxer which is supposed to be in San Diegobut that is
no 4. |  |
 | This is a dock
landing ship. Small Tank Landing craft are stored inside and can enter and
exit via the rear. It is a Whidbey Island class and may be USS Germantown
(42), USS Comstock (45), USS Rushmore (47). |
| The fleet needs to be kept supplied. This is a refuelling ship
but I'm not sure of the name.. |  |
 | Not quite part of
the navy but closely related is the coastguard. This patrol boat was tied up
in the naval base.. |
| This is either a destroyer or a frigate. These days the only
difference is size. I could not tell. |  |
 | This was a
hospital ship which was just back from being in a support role after the
Asian tsunami. |
| The guide was a little vague about this ship which is reputed to
be one of the new generation of warship and is extremely powerful.. |  |
 | Then we moved on
towards the shipbuilding/repair yards. Alaskan Navigator is a supertanker in
for some modifications. |
| Behind were two new supertankers under construction. These are
truly vast ships. |  |
 | They were keeping
this one under wraps but it looks as though it was some sort of assault
carrier like USS Boxer (see above). |
| They do build smaller ships too. This patrol boat was still under
wraps in the dry dock. Perhaps they were painting it. |  |
 | So as we returned
to the landing we passed some of the skyscrapers with their varying
architecture. The area with the trees at the front was actually a marina. |
| So we returned to the dock after the first half of our tour
passing the bulk of the cruise line Oosterdam. |  |
 | The second half
of the cruise headed north passing Lindbergh Field, the airport for San
Diego. This DHL freight aircraft was particularly colourful. |
| The northern half of the bay is much quieter with a number of
fish farms. These bring on the fishermen waiting for the ones which get
away. |  |
 | The north end of the Coronado spur is home to the naval air
station. With the carriers in dock, most of the aircraft are parked here.
Like these Tomcats. |
| There was also a
huge number of helicopters parked outside. There were several rows of them. |  |
 | Over on the other
side of the bay was another of the modern carriers, seen here end on which
shows how lopsided such ships are. |
|