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From: VANDENBR%UNCG.BITNET@ncsuvm.cc.ncsu.edu (David A. Vandenbroucke)
Newsgroups: sci.military
Subject: USN fleet numbering
Message-ID: <1991Apr29.051115.4449@amd.com>
Date: 23 Apr 91 16:10:00 GMT
Sender: military@amd.com
Organization: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc.
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From: "David A. Vandenbroucke" <VANDENBR%UNCG.BITNET@ncsuvm.cc.ncsu.edu>


I was prowling my Friendly Neighborhood Hobby Store the other day, and I
noticed all of Victory Games' "fleet" series lined up in a row:  "Second
Fleet," "Third Fleet," "Fifth Fleet," "Sxith Fleet," and "Seventh Fleet."
That got me to wondering:  Why are there no 1st Fleet or 4th Fleet?  (I have
subsequently learned that there is in fact no 5th Fleet, either, but that
there had been talk of activating one for the Indian Ocean.)  The question
remains, how did these fleet numbers come about?  Was there a time when we had
"Seven Fleets for Seven Seas?"  Is the current numbering system the outcome of
some later reorganization program that cut out the 1st, 4th, and 5th Fleets
without renumbering the rest?

	[This is the sort of question that results in a lot of
	 followups.  Sure answers only, please.  --CDR]

--Dav Vandenbroucke
Dept. Economics
UNC Greensboro