Eric Wertheim is a defense consultant, columnist, and author specializing in naval and maritime affairs. Frequently interviewed by the news media, he has served as a speechwriter for Pentagon officials and a consultant to private industry and the U.S. government. He has been a columnist for Proceedings magazine since 1994. He lives in the Washington D.C. area.

Articles by Eric Wertheim

USS Detroit (CL-8) underway before 1940.

USS Detroit (CL-8)

By Eric Wertheim
August 1997
Built by Bethlehem Shipbuilding Corporation of Quincy, Massachusetts, the USS Detroit (CL-8) was the fifth of ten Omaha-class cruisers. Launched on 29 June 1922, she was commissioned on 31 ...
USS Abraham Lincoln (SSBN-602) slides down the ways during the launching ceremony in Portsmouth Naval Shipyar

USS Abraham Lincoln (SSBN-602)

By Eric Wertheim
June 1997
The Abraham Lincoln (SSBN-602) was the only one of the five George Washington (SSBN-598)-class strategic missile submarines to be built at the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard. Sponsored by President Lincoln's great ...
view of the USS Welles (DD-628) underway shortly after the end of World War II.

USS Welles (DD-628)

By Eric Wertheim
May 1997
The Welles (DD-628) was a class destroyer that was launched on Sep 7, 1942 and commissioned on Aug 16, 1943. The Welles took part in various military engagements during WWII.
USS Rinehart (DE-196) underway off the New York Navy Yard.

USS Rinehart (DE-196)

By Eric Wertheim
March 1997
The U.S. Navy destroyer Rinehart (DE-196), built by the Federal Shipbuilding and Dry Dock Company of Newark, New Jersey, was laid down on 21 October 1943 and commissioned on 12 ...

USS Hake (SS-256)

By Eric Wertheim
January 1997
The U.S. submarine Hake (SS-256), built by Electric Boat Company, Groton, Connecticut, was launched on 17 July 1942 and commissioned on 30 October 1942 with Lieutenant Commander J.C. Broach in ...
Port broadside view of the USS Vance (DER-387) entering Pearl Harbor post 1955.

USS Vance (DE/DER-87)

By Eric Wertheim
December 1996
Launched on 16 July 1943, the U.S. destroyer escort Vance (DE- 387) was commissioned on 1 November 1943 and placed under the command of Lieutenant Commander E.A. Anderson, U.S. Coast ...
Broadside view of the USS Wilkes Barre (CL-103) underway

USS Wilkes-Barre (CL-103)

By Eric Wertheim
October 1996
Launched on 24 December 1943, the USS Wilkes-Barre (CL-103) was commissioned at the Philadelphia Navy Yard on 1 July 1944 with Captain Robert Porter, Jr. in Command. Following shakedown training ...
Starboard bow view 45 degrees off centerline of the USS Leonard Wood (APA-12), 11 June 1945, San Francisco, California.

USS Leonard Wood (AP-25/APA-12)

By Eric Wertheim
September 1996
The transport vessel Leonard Wood (AP-25), formerly called the Nutmeg State and Western World, was built in 1922 and renamed Leonard Wood after being purchased by the War Department ...
Starboard broadside view of the USS Baltimore (CA-68)

USS Baltimore (CA-68)

By Eric Wertheim
July 1996
Lead ship of the largest class of heavy cruisers ever built, the USS Baltimore (CA-68), was the lead ship of the Baltimore-class of heavy cruisers, and the fifth U.S ...
Starboard bow view of the USS Soley (DD-707)

USS Soley (DD-707)

By Eric Wertheim
March 1996
The USS Soley (DD-707), an Allen M. Sumner-class destroyer, was built by the Federal Shipbuilding and Drydock Company at Kearny, New Jersey. Commissioned on 7 December 1944, the Soley was ...

USS Argonaut (SS-475)

By Eric Wertheim
November 1995
The second U.S. submarine to bear the name “Arg­onaut,” the SS-475, was laid down on 28 June 1944 by the Portsmouth, New Hampshire, Navy Yard. She was launched ...