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PCU
North Carolina Keel-laying Held in May
On 22 May
2004 in Newport News, Virginia, Welder Stanley Britt permanently welds
the initials of Ship’s Sponsor Mrs. Linda Bowman during the keel laying
ceremony of Pre-Commissioning Unit (PCU) North Carolina (SSN-777),
the U.S. Navy’s newest Virginia-class submarine. PCU North
Carolina is the 4th Virginia-class submarine to begin
construction, and is the 6th Navy vessel to be named North Carolina.
The ship’s sponsor Mrs. Linda Bowman said, “For the submarine North
Carolina, my hope is that she will sail in peace to keep us free. My
assurance is that she will always be ready to defend that freedom
whenever necessary.” The plate with her initials will be permanently
affixed to the stern of the ship.
Also in
attendance were Assistant Secretary of the Navy Hansford T. Johnson,
North Carolina Senator Elizabeth Dole, Navy Nuclear Reactors Director ADM
Frank “Skip” Bowman, and Northrop Grumman President Thomas C.
Schievelbein. The current construction schedule for North Carolina
calls for the submarine’s launching in late 2005 followed by
commissioning in late 2007.
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Target
Tests ASW Sensors and Weapons
This test platform,
formally titled Weapon Set-To-hit Threat Target (WSTTT), was developed in
San Diego to support Operational Test and Evaluation Force (OPTEVFOR)
operations used to test Anti-Submarine Warfare (ASW) sensors and weapons.
It can be lowered and raised from a surface support platform, but has no
dedicated propulsion system. The platform allows unarmed ASW torpedoes to
impact the vessel without damage.
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Mine-hunting
Submersible Supports 5th Fleet Exercise
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AT3 Cassie Gibson guides an AN/AQS-14 mine detection submersible
unit back onto its cradle on the ramp of an MH-53 Sea Dragon assigned to
the “Blackhawks” of Helicopter Mine Countermeasures Squadron One Five
(HM-15) during mine-hunting missions as part a bilateral exercise with a
country in the 5th Fleet theater. The exercise tested a number or warfare
areas, include mine counter measures, anti-air, surface and submarine,
electronic and explosive ordinance disposal.
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AT3 Gibson and AM1 Jeffery Osborne secure the AN/AQS-14
submersible after recovering it on the ramp of an MH-53 Sea Dragon.
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San Francisco
Returns to Guam
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The
attack submarine USS San Francisco (SSN-711) escorted by two
harbor
tugs, returns to Apra Harbor, Guam, after a five-month deployment. San
Francisco is attached to Submarine Squadron 15, which is
forward-deployed and is homeported in the U.S. territory of Guam.
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