The USS Briscoe has a crew of 345  ALSO: JFK Jr. burial at sea today

July 22, 1999
Web posted at: 12:50 p.m. EDT (1650 GMT)

NORFOLK, Virginia (CNN) -- A ship of war was used so that John F. Kennedy Jr., his wife, Carolyn, and her sister, Lauren Bessette, could rest in peace. Their remains were scattered today from the deck of the USS Briscoe, not far from where they died in a plane crash off Martha's Vineyard last week.

One of the ship's recent assignments was to check out vessels suspected of carrying cargo to Iraq in violation of U.N. sanctions

Here are some facts about the Briscoe (DD-977), a Spruance Class guided missile destroyer, with more than 20 years of service in the Navy:

• Home port -- Norfolk, Virginia
  
  
• Crew -- 345
  
  
• Length -- 563 feet
  
  
• Beam -- 55 feet
  
  
• Speed -- 33 knots
  
  
• Armed with two 5-inch, .54-caliber guns
  
  
• Capable of firing Tomahawk, Harpoon and NATO Sea Sparrow missiles and other weapons

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