David McIntyre, of Fanwood, was one of eight people who splurged on a $5,000 ticket for a rare chance to sail on the famed Battleship New Jersey on Thursday.
He said his two-hour drive from Union County to Paulsboro — where the Navy warship was stationed before departing — was worth it for the once-in-a-lifetime experience.
As a Cub Master, McIntyre took local Cub Scouts on overnight trips to the Battleship New Jersey, and soon became a fan, regularly tuning into the museum’s updates, he said.
“And then when this opportunity came up, I was sort of like ‘well, when am I ever going to get to sail on a battleship,’” McIntyre said.
Over a dozen Battleship New Jersey museum volunteers, veterans and ticket holders, rode on the USS New Jersey during its two-hour ride to Camden.
The vessel returned to its home pier Thursday, after a long 12-week repair journey at the Philadelphia Navy Yard.
The Battleship New Jersey was dry docked at the Navy Yard from March to earlier this month to undergo a $10 million renovation. It was the first time it had left its dock in decades.
With repairs completed, the ship started the first leg of its return back to New Jersey on June 14 and made a stop in Paulsboro. It was towed to Paulsboro for deballasting, which involves removing water from the ship’s hull that was needed for dry docking.
“Big J” was then pulled down the Delaware River by tugboats on Thursday, approaching the Camden pier as…
