When the USS New Jersey left the pier for the first time in two decades at the end of March, it did so in style -- with the warship's unusual yellow battle flag flying in the wind.
Decommissioned in 1991 and now serving as a museum ship, the Iowa-class battleship traveled from Camden, New Jersey, down the Delaware River to Philadelphia Navy Yard last week for a 60-day period of dry-dock maintenance in accordance in Navy regulations, USNI News reports.
According to the Battleship New Jersey Museum and Memorial, the former warship left Camden with its battle flag flying high for the first time in the more than 30 years since its decommissioning:
A fixture of American naval tradition since the Revolutionary War, Navy warships usually fly custom battle flags while entering and exiting port and during "special ship evolutions" such as holidays, a phenomenon Military.com has documented extensively in the past.
But while many of these flags pay tribute to the namesake behind each vessel, the USS New Jersey's battle flag has a more modern spin on the traditional battle ensign.
The USS New Jersey's battle flag consists of the ship's motto, "Firepower for Freedom," emblazoned in red above the ship's name and serial number (BB-62) in blue against a yellow field, while a silhouette of the ship's primary 16-inch, 50 caliber Mark 7 guns sits below them. But below that, in bright red, sits an unusual word in blue: "WETSU."
"WETSU" is not a piece of New Jersey history or naval lore: According to service members and veterans, it stands for "We Eat This Stuff Up" (or a slightly more vulgar version), a piece of military slang that typically stands for putting on a happy face while performing some kind of grueling labor.
Related: Want to Walk Beneath a Massive Battleship? Here's How to Take a 'Once-in-a-Lifetime' Tour.
The exact origin of the phrase and how it proliferated through the ranks is likely lost to time, but according to veterans of the USS New Jersey, the motto was apparently imparted to the crew by now-retired Rear Adm. Ronald D. Tucker during his time as the vessel's last commanding officer. One Navy veteran suggested that Tucker frequently posted "WETSU" on bulletin boards to remind his crew to grin and bear it during inspections, press availabilities or other unusual disruptions to daily life aboard the ship.
While historical slogans such as "Don't Give Up the Ship," "Fire When Ready" and even "Give 'Em Hell" are frequent fixtures of Navy battle flags, the incorporation of relatively modern military slang into a ship's battle ensign is certainly unusual.
The WETSU flag appeared in photographs from aboard the USS New Jersey during the 1990s, and curators with the Battleship New Jersey Museum and Memorial presumed that some sailor took the flag home with them after the ship's decommissioning. But the flag had actually remained on board the ship for years before the curators discovered and restored it.
To learn more about the USS New Jersey's battle flag, watch this October 2023 video from the Battleship New Jersey Museum and Memorial unveiling it to the public:
