USS Cole relaunched with little fanfare

[Guest guest]

Kind of ironic isn't it, the last terrorism act of Osama Bin Laden, the USS

Cole, is relaunched for action after the WTC/Pentagon Acts of War.

USS Cole relaunched with little fanfare

September 16, 2001 Posted: 5:47 PM EDT (2147 GMT)

The USS Cole is relaunched Friday at Ingalls Shipbuilding in

Pascagoula, Mississippi.

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PASCAGOULA, Mississippi (CNN) -- In a symbolic message of the nation's " resolve

to fight back, " the destroyer USS Cole was afloat again Sunday after a terrorist

attack that killed 17 sailors.

With little fanfare, the Cole was put back into the water early Friday and towed

a short distance to a mooring at Ingalls Shipbuilding in southern Mississippi.

The destroyer's engines were not started, but it was a powerful message for the

U.S. Navy following Tuesday's terrorist strikes on New York and Washington.

" There's a clear example of resolve in this country to fight back, " Sen.

Warner, the ranking Republican on the Senate Armed Services Committee, said

Sunday.

The 505-foot guided missile destroyer has undergone extensive renovation since

the October 12, 2000, bombing that killed 17 of its crew and wounded 39. The

ship is not scheduled to return to its home port at Norfolk, Virginia, until

April 2002.

Two suicide bombers pulled alongside the vessel during a port call in Aden,

Yemen, and detonated explosives that blew a 40-foot hole in its side.

" She really looks good to be back in the water, " Chief Gunner's Mate Norman

Larson told CNN. " My personal opinion is [it's a sign that] we're coming back. "

Larson had gone to the ship's mess for lunch, saw a long food line and turned

back, returning to an office to do paperwork when the terrorists struck. Many of

his shipmates were killed in the mess hall.

" I think about them every day -- several times a day sometimes, " Larson said.

Larson said U.S. service members are appreciative of the support given them

throughout the country and ready to defend the nation when called.

" We look forward to serving America again at sea, " the 25-year Navy veteran

said.

Meanwhile, sources have told CNN that two of the suspected hijackers who crashed

a jetliner into the Pentagon on Tuesday were under surveillance of U.S.

intelligence and were associates of Osama bin Laden.

One of the hijackers was seen on surveillance tape last year in Kuala Lumpur,

Malaysia, meeting with a man suspected in the bombing of the Cole, one official

said.

Larson said he wished the United States had struck back soon after last year's

attack on his ship. Now, he and other American personnel are preparing for

battle.

" It's time to stop talking and take some action, " he said. " That's the way I

feel. I'd like to get over there and take care of business. "