USS Bonhomme Richard Update: Fire Extinguished, Under Investigation For The 'Mini-Aircraft Carrier'

The U.S. Navy opened an investigation Friday of a fire aboard the USS Bonhomme Richard in the San Diego docks following a four-day battle to contain a blaze that caused extensive damage to the ship’s superstructure.

“We do not know the extent of the damage. ... We cannot make any conclusions until the investigation is complete,” Rear Adm. Philip Sobeck told reporters.

The Wasp-class amphibious assault ship was said to be halfway through its lifespan when the fire erupted Sunday. The source of the blaze has yet to be identified. The fire spread rapidly across the ship, causing extensive damage to the ship’s superstructure before moving to the upper decks.

The ship began to list toward the dock before crews was able to flush out the water and seal most breaches along the hull. Crew also prevented the fire from reaching the 1 million gallons of fuel onboard.

More than 60 sailors and civilians were injured fighting the blaze. No deaths were reported.

“This should have been completely preventable because the Navy is supposed to have good practices for stowage aboard ships,” Bryan Clark, a senior fellow from conservative think-tank Hudson Institute, told the Wall Street Journal. “If a fire breaks out, the Navy should be able to fight it immediately.”

The Navy will determine if the ship is repairable when the investigation is completed.

The Bonhomme Richard, which has been described as a “mini-aircraft carrier.” It serves as one of the few take-off points for Lockheed Martin’s F-35 Joint Strike Fighter, a fifth-generation stealth fighter with the most expensive weapons system the Pentagon ever commissioned at an estimated cost of around $1.5 trillion over 50 years. The deal was inked in 2012.

The U.S. Air Force, Navy, and Marine Corps all employ variants of the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter.