NORFOLK, Va.—In the Navy, a plankowner is a member of the original crew of a newly commissioned ship. Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS Dwight D. Eisenhower (CVN 69) was commissioned on October 18, 1977, and 48 years later on May 20, IKE’s plankowners walked her decks once again.
These plankowners have many good memories from their time attached to IKE, and touring the warfighting vessel helped them relive those memories while also witnessing the upgrades that took place after they left.
“Being on board has all the memories flooding back to me,” said former Lt. Philip Whalen, an IKE plankowner. “It’s mainly about all the amazing people that I got to work with, we just had such a cohesive crew.”
While many of the plankowners relived memories and shared their stories, they also experienced shock with all of the changes made since they left.
“On the bridge is where I noticed many changes,” said former Hospital Corpsman 3rd Class Bob Lenn, an IKE plankowner. “We didn’t have any of the equipment up there now, all we had were mechanical gauges.”
Not only has the equipment been updated over the years, but so have the work spaces.
“It’s very nostalgic,” said Whalen. “For example, when I was stationed here, all the walls and the floors were green in medical, and now they’re white. It looks so much better now than it did then.”
Being a part of the original crew to sail aboard IKE gives the plankowners a sense of pride, and they wish to share that pride to the current crew who have continued the ship’s legacy.
“I know that there’s going to be rough times, but one day you’ll look back at everything and you’re going to cherish all the time you spent here,” said Lenn. As IKE makes changes to keep up with the modern global security environment, plankowners are a living reminder of where the ship started.