Mysterious Aircraft Carrier in San Diego
@DeborahDiane (40159)
Laguna Woods, California
November 7, 2015 11:16pm CST
While we were in San Diego for the meeting of the kidney doctors, our hotel room looked out towards the San Diego harbor and the naval air station on Coronado.
In the past, I have spent time on that naval air station. One of my son-in-laws was in the Navy and he was stationed on the Ronald Reagan, an aircraft carrier. He even gave us a complete tour of it, which was fascinating.
Because of our experience with the Reagan, we were delighted to see another carrier docked across the harbor from us. Just as we were packing up to leave, the carrier pulled away from the dock, too.
When we got home, I decided to look up which aircraft carrier it was, since it had a prominent number 4 on it. When I looked it up, the articles said that CV-4 was the USS Ranger and it was used in World War II, survived the war, was decommission on Oct. 18, 1946, and was sold for scrap in January, 1947.
I could not find any record of another carrier with the number 4.
So what the heck was I looking at across the harbor ... a ghost ship?
UPDATE: Owlwings did some research and discovered that it was the LHD-4, USS Boxer. That is a different type of carrier that carries the number 4. I really appreciated the info! 
11 people like this
9 responses
@DeborahDiane (40159)
• Laguna Woods, California
9 Nov 15
I think you may be right ... a ghost ship and they didn't think anyone would notice! LOL
@ElizabethWallace (12074)
• United States
8 Nov 15
Like with the rocket that lit up the sky over Santa Monica, there be secrets. 
2 people like this
@much2say (54161)
• Los Angeles, California
9 Nov 15
@ElizabethWallace Oh, when was this? I'll have to look that one up!
3 people like this
@DeborahDiane (40159)
• Laguna Woods, California
9 Nov 15
Yes, there are definitely secrets. That rocket was visible in Irvine. Our daughter was at a shopping center at 6:00, and a man came running in, freaking out that he had seen a UFO! LOL 
3 people like this
@ElizabethWallace (12074)
• United States
9 Nov 15
@DeborahDiane There is a website for the neighborhood over here. Several people on the hill saw it and asked about it. I reminded them we are not far from Camp Pendleton.
2 people like this
@owlwings (43915)
• Cambridge, England
8 Nov 15
A little research shows me that it's almost certainly USS Boxer LHD-4.
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Jump to: navigation, search For other ships of the same name, see USS Boxer. USS Boxer off the coast of Australia History United States Name: USS Boxer Awarded: 3 October 1988 Builder: Ingalls Shipbuilding Laid down: 1
2 people like this
@DeborahDiane (40159)
• Laguna Woods, California
9 Nov 15
WooHoo! Thanks for the discovery! So it wasn't CV-4, but LHD 4. It is the USS Boxer. I appreciate knowing the truth, because I wondered what was going on. (Inquiring minds need to know!)
2 people like this
@DeborahDiane (40159)
• Laguna Woods, California
10 Nov 15
@owlwings - I actually looked on Wikipedia for a carrier with the number 4, but I guess I did not look long enough.
1 person likes this
@owlwings (43915)
• Cambridge, England
10 Nov 15
@DeborahDiane I think that I considered the possibility that it might be from another South Pacific navy and that led me to look for a list of all aircraft carriers in the world (there aren't all that many). Then I searched (Ctrl+F) that list for any with the number '4', checked the images and found the one which was most alike (with one straight flight deck - most of the CVs have an angled deck).
1 person likes this
@celticeagle (162065)
• Boise, Idaho
8 Nov 15
Have you had your eyes checked recently? LOL It must have been another numbered ship, information hadn't been updated OR, it was a ghost ship.
1 person likes this
@DeborahDiane (40159)
• Laguna Woods, California
9 Nov 15
Ha Ha! It definitely had the number 4 on it. However, Owlwings discovered that it was actually LHD-4, the USS Boxer.
2 people like this
@celticeagle (162065)
• Boise, Idaho
9 Nov 15
@DeborahDiane ...That is cool that he was able to find it.
2 people like this
@DeborahDiane (40159)
• Laguna Woods, California
10 Nov 15
@celticeagle - I agree! I was impressed that @Owlwings was able to figure it out.
2 people like this
@DeborahDiane (40159)
• Laguna Woods, California
9 Nov 15
Ha Ha! Thanks to @owlwings, I discovered that it is the USS Boxer, LHD-4.
1 person likes this
@arthurchappell (45002)
• Preston, England
8 Nov 15
I have been round HMS Belfast which is a warship moored as a museum in London - I'd love to go round an aircraft carrier one day too
1 person likes this
@arthurchappell (45002)
• Preston, England
9 Nov 15
@DeborahDiane were there planes on the flight decks too?
1 person likes this
@DeborahDiane (40159)
• Laguna Woods, California
10 Nov 15
@arthurchappell - No planes, as far as I could see. However, when our son-in-law took us on the Reagan, there were no planes stores on the flight deck, either, because of the risk they could be damaged by high seas, etc.
1 person likes this
@DeborahDiane (40159)
• Laguna Woods, California
9 Nov 15
We loved our tour of the USS Ronald Reagan. Our son-in-law was able to show us everything from where they sleep and eat, up to the flight deck where the planes land.
1 person likes this
@LadyDuck (465080)
• Switzerland
9 Nov 15
@DeborahDiane In fact you only see the number 4, but not the letters. The shape was too different to be the same aircraft.
1 person likes this
@DeborahDiane (40159)
• Laguna Woods, California
10 Nov 15
@LadyDuck - Yes, the shape was different. It would have been easier to match it to the right ship if I had known the letters, too.
1 person likes this
@DeborahDiane (40159)
• Laguna Woods, California
9 Nov 15
You are right! It is a different ship. Owlwings found another carrier that also has the number 4. It is LHD-4, USS Boxer.
1 person likes this
@Tampa_girl7 (49573)
• United States
8 Nov 15
Very intriguing and freaky. Sounds like the beginnings of a good time travel book or movie.
1 person likes this
@DeborahDiane (40159)
• Laguna Woods, California
9 Nov 15
Owlwings solved my mystery. I really appreciate it!
@DeborahDiane (40159)
• Laguna Woods, California
9 Nov 15
Fortunately, Owlwings found another carrier with the number 4 on it, and he solved the problem.
1 person likes this
@DeborahDiane (40159)
• Laguna Woods, California
10 Nov 15
@JudyEv - Yup ... I did sort of love the mystery! LOL
1 person likes this
@JudyEv (330413)
• Rockingham, Australia
9 Nov 15
@DeborahDiane And bang goes another good mystery!
1 person likes this
