USS North Carolina Arrives at New Home

[unhappycamper]

USS North Carolina Arrives at New Home
May 19, 2008
Navy News

GROTON, Conn. - Southeastern Connecticut welcomed USS North Carolina (SSN 777), the Navy's newest nuclear-powered submarine, as it arrived at its new homeport May 16.

North Carolina, the fourth of the Virginia-class fast-attack submarines, joined its sister ships USS Virginia (SSN 774), USS Texas (SSN 775), USS Hawaii (SSN 776) and 12 other fast-attack submarines homeported at Naval Submarine Base New London.

"North Carolina's arrival at Submarine Squadron Four comes at an important time for the submarine force. One of the most significant events within the submarine force for 2008 is the Operational Evaluation program milestone for the Virginia-class," said Capt. Rick Breckenridge, Submarine Squadron 4 commodore.

"This year-long event tests every mission area of this new class and evaluates whether the designers and builders delivered the warfighting requirements required by the Navy. While USS Virginia has been conducting the bulk of this mission evaluation, USS North Carolina will quickly join this demanding real-world mission tasking."

Family members, General Dynamics Electric Boat representatives and Submarine Group 2 and Submarine Squadron 4 personnel welcomed North Carolina to its new homeport.


Rest of article at: http://www.military.com/news/article/navy-news/uss-north-carolina-arrives-at-new-home.html



uhc comment: Meet the $3,200,000,000+ USS North Carolina



http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/USS_North_Carolina_%28SSN-777%29

History

The contract to build her was awarded to Northrop Grumman Newport News (then called Newport News Shipbuilding & Drydock Company) in Newport News, Virginia on 30 September 1998 and her keel was laid down on 22 May 2004. She was christened on 21 April 2007 sponsored by Linda Bowman, wife of Admiral Frank L. "Skip" Bowman, the former director of Naval Reactors. Captain Mark E. Davis, a native of upstate New York, is the ship’s first commanding officer and leads a crew of approximately 134 officers and enlisted personnel.

The boat has physical connections to previous North Carolinas. Sections of the teak decking from the battleship BB-55 are reused within the submarine, and several pieces from a silver serving set made for the armored cruiser ACR-12, then transferred through the state governor to the battleship will be used aboard SSN-777.<1>

North Carolina joined the USN on February 21, 2008, after problems with the boat's steam valve and internal piping system had forced two delays in the acceptance of the vessel.<2> Welding issues in the internal piping system scuttled a first-planned December 2007 delivery, and the discovery of an inadequate steam value forced a further delay from January to February 2008.

The ship's official commissioning ceremony was held on May 3, 2008, in Wilmington, North Carolina.<3> The submarine will now join the U.S. Navy's Atlantic Fleet based in New London, Connecticut.<4>