USS Intrepid celebrates 80 years since it was commissioned into service
NEW YORK - Eighty years ago Wednesday, the USS Intrepid was commissioned into active military service.
Wednesday morning, former crew members returned to mark their legendary ship's anniversary.
When Ed Coyne first stepped on the USS Intrepid, he was 17.
"When we first started and you looked up at it, we used to say it's awesome. To me, today it is, it's awesome," he said.
Today, he's 97 and wouldn't miss the 80th anniversary for anything.
"I made up my mind. As long as I'm alive and I'm not in a hospital, I was gonna be in here for this day," he said.
The 130 crewmen there shaped the story of this legendary aircraft carrier-turned-museum.
"If somebody said they weren't scared during battle, they're a damn liar. You had to be scared. I'm glad I did my part," former crewman Ed Hill said.
In 1943, the USS Intrepid first sailed into the Pacific theater of World War II. The crew weathered relentless enemy fire and survived five kamikaze attacks.
"They could do everything to hurt it. Bomb it, torpedo it, suicide plane it. They couldn't sink it. They couldn't sink it," Coyne said.
Watch CBS New York's interview with former USS Intrepid radioman Robert Cassara
When the nation needed hope, the men of the USS Intrepid provided, decade after decade.
In the '60s when the astronauts returned to Earth, there to pick them up were the men of the Intrepid.
"We didn't realize how big it was until later on. This was the beginning of the space program," former crewman Tom Wargo said.
"First off, this ship is like a cemetery to us because it's hallowed ground," former crewman Ralph Slane said.
But the ship is alive with memories and a shared reminder that behind the steel frame lies the beating heart of the humanity and the spirit of those who served.
"It isn't a piece of steel. It's a piece of history," Coyne said.
A piece of history that wouldn't be here without these men.
Since 1943, more than 50,000 people served on board the aircraft carrier.
The carrier was decommissioned in 1974 but reopened as the Intrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum in 1982.
The Intrepid Museum is located at Pier 86. For more information about the Intrepid, CLICK HERE.
