USS Skipjack (SSN-585)

USS "Skipjack" (SSN-585), the lead ship of her class of nuclear-powered attack submarine, was the third ship of the United States Navy to be named after the fish; Skipjack tuna.

Her keel was laid down on 29 May 1956 by the Electric Boat Division of the General Dynamics Corporation in Groton, Connecticut. She was launched on 26 May 1958 sponsored by Helen Mahon, wife of Representative George H. Mahon from the 19th District of Texas, and commissioned on 15 April 1959 with Commander W. W. Behrens, Jr., in command.

Advances in submarine design

On the "Skipjack", there were many design changes that were products of new scientific insight into submarine design. The submarine industry, now with nuclear power, had wanted to make a "true" submarine. This required a design in its element underwater, not solely one theoretically able to remain submerged indefinitely. The greatest alteration was the new tear-drop hull, pioneered by the conventionally-powered USS|Albacore|AGSS-569, and designed for optimum performance underwater. The new hull's only protrusions were the sail and diving planes. The twenty-three-foot sail, resembling a shark's dorsal fin, rose at a point midway in the hull to keep the ship stable. The diving planes, similar in function to the wings of an airplane, were moved from the hull to this new sail, with the periscopes and antenna masts.Thus, they could only be useful when the submarine is in its natural environment—like the control surfaces on an airplane. Also, a single propeller behind the rudder now propelled "Skipjack", making it more maneuverable.

Other experiments in design also benefited "Skipjack" by allowing the vessel to be built with improved steel. Even the controls and the anchor were changed in the development of the new submarine. In the core, a "second generation" S5W reactor advance of the USS|Nautilus|SSN-571 reactor was installed, allowing the ship to travel at full power for 90,000 to convert|100000|mi|km|-3. Nuclear power had already been discovered, but the reactor was such an advance on "Nautilus"'s reactor that it entirely changed its magnitude and capability. Furthermore, although the S5W reactor was thirty percent bigger than "Nautilus"'s reactor, the reactor compartment on "Skipjack" only occupied twenty feet of the ship's convert|252|ft|m|0 total length. (This reactor proved so efficient the Navy began to mass-order them). Finally, the design of the core was such that there became new standards of accessibility.

"Skipjack" had such advanced underwater capabilities her path could be compared to an airplane in flight. As earlier private inventors like John P. Holland had envisioned, the submarine was designed as having its natural environment underwater, and became capable of things never before seen.

After launch

The boat's motto was "Radix Nova Tridentis", meaning "Root of the New Sea Power"; and correctly so, as every US attack submarine until 1997 (when the diving planes were moved back to the hull) turned out to follow the Skipjack's design.

After being launched May 26, 1958, "Skipjack" was soon dubbed the" "world's fastest submarine", "after setting the speed record on sea trials in March of that same year. It was designed to have a speed in excess of 20 knots, but its actual speed was a guarded secret. However, the rated reactor power in shaft horsepower (15,000 shp) and reasonable assumptions about the hull's coefficient of drag, cross sectional area, and appendage drag can be combined via algebra to show that the vessel should have reached 31 knots submerged. This speed was some 9 knots faster than the "Nautilus" made using the same basic reactor, and only 2 knots shy of the "Albacore"'s best theoretical submerged speed (33 kn).

"Skipjack"'s maneuver capabilities, furthermore, added a whole different dimension to ASW problems as she could reverse direction in the distance of her own length, and were referred to as "flying", as "Skipjack" and her sister ships climbed, dove, and banked like an airplane. The antisubmarine warfare (ASW) problems created by such maneuverability and high sustained speeds took several decades to resolve to parity.

She remained a significant and effective threat, even with second class sonar equipment and fire control systems (space limitations, she was short by the standards of later classes) through to the end of her distinguished career. This was still true after a quieter seven-bladed propeller given to her on the class A refit of '73–'76 quieted her considerably but also reduced her speed noticeably. Her trans-Atlantic underwater crossing record was set using the noisier older five-bladed 'speed prop' in an early return from forward deployment in the Mediterranean.

Given her class's initial five-bladed "speed prop" and a command structure willing to forgo acoustic stealth (always the submarines long suit) for speed, she and her sisters compare favorably with the speed and maneuverability of the Soviet Union's Alfa and Akula submarine classes.

1960s

During her shakedown cruise in August 1959, she became the first nuclear ship to pass through the Straits of Gibraltar and operate in the Mediterranean. Following post-shakedown availability at Groton, Connecticut, the nuclear submarine conducted type training and participated in an advanced Atlantic submarine exercise from May through July 1960, which earned the submarine a Navy Unit Commendation, and also a Battle Efficiency "E" award, an award it would receive three more times.

In late 1960, the "Skipjack" entered the mouth of a long ship channel leading to Murmansk, Russia, in the Arctic Ocean. In the journey, the ship passed so close to the Soviet port that the officers could look through a periscope and see the port only thirty or forty yards away. The encounter seemed too close for the US Navy. In fact, upon entering the canal, crewmen saw one officer turn off a tracing mechanism so that there would be no written record of the action. The remainder of the year was spent in a restricted yard availability and upkeep.

"Skipjack" commenced her 1961 operations by participating in two weeks of type training followed by anti-submarine warfare exercises through August, visiting Mayport, Florida, before returning to Groton.

In January 1962, "Skipjack" operated out of Key West, Florida, for two weeks before entering the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard in Maine for extensive overhaul, lasting four and one-half months. Following her return to New London, Connecticut, the submarine operated locally prior to departing in October for duty in the Mediterranean with the Sixth Fleet. During this tour, "Skipjack" participated in various fleet and NATO exercises and visited Toulon, France; and La Spezia and Naples, Italy, before returning to New London. In this year, the Skipjack also conducted the fastest submerged transit of the Atlantic Ocean on record, which is a record that still stands.

The year 1963 was occupied in submarine attack operations and ASW exercises, all designed to test the capabilities of the nuclear-powered attack submarine. The highlight of 1964 was two months of duty with NATO forces, participating in exercises "Masterstroke" and "Teamwork" and visiting Le Havre, France, and the Isle of Portland, England, before returning to New London in October.

After devoting most of 1965 to training exercises, the submarine ended the year by entering the Charleston Naval Shipyard in South Carolina for an overhaul that lasted until 18 October 1966. "Skipjack" then got underway for sea trials off Charleston, before joining USS|Shark|SSN-591|2 for four days of type training in the Jacksonville, Florida, area. She then sailed to her new home port, Norfolk, Virginia, before participating in Atlantic Fleet exercises.

Early in February 1967, "Skipjack" got underway for sonar and weapon tests and then participated in Atlantic submarine exercises from March through June. July and August were spent in restricted availability at the Newport News Shipbuilding and Dry Dock Company following which "Skipjack" took part in FIXWEX G-67, an exercise designed to evaluate fixed wing ASW aircraft against a submarine with "Skipjack"'s characteristics. Following an extended deployment in October and November, the submarine returned to Norfolk to prepare for major operations of that year which she completed on 25 February 1968. The remainder of 1968 was spent in local operations in the Norfolk area.

On 9 April 1969, "Skipjack" commenced an overhaul in the Norfolk Naval Shipyard which was completed in the fall of 1970. After sea trials in December 1970, "Skipjack" returned to her regular duties.

1970s

Highlights of 1971 were sound trials and weapons system tests at the Atlantic Fleet Range, Puerto Rico, from 25 January through 5 March and NATO exercise "Royal Night" from 15 September to 9 October. On 22 October, "Skipjack" returned to Norfolk, where she remained through January 1972.

"Skipjack" spent most of 1972 in tests and type training out of New London and Norfolk and in the Caribbean. The submarine returned to Norfolk late in the year.

In late spring 1973 "Skipjack" returned to the Mediterranean Sea and conducted several exercises with the Sixth Fleet. During that time "Skipjack" was based at La Maddalena on the NE corner of Sardinia. Returning to Norfolk in September "Skipjack" crossed paths with Hurricane Ellen during the Atlantic transit. Down in the subsurface calm, the crew were hardly even aware of the turbulence above them.

After returning to Norfolk "Skipjack" conducted several exercises with ASW aircraft flying from air bases in Virginia and North Carolina. In these exercises "Skipjack" played the role of a Russian submarine that the ASW forces were to locate, track and attack (simulated).

As part of the exercises "Skipjack" was placed under certain handicaps that would not have been present in normal operations. She was restricted to a designated 20 by 10 mile operating area. Also at that time "Skipjack" had a noise problem in her reduction gears. The ASW crews were given a complete sound profile of those gears. In addition "Skipjack" was required to generate a certain designated sound signal at all times. This was done so the ASW crews could be certain they were targeting the right submarine and not accidentally launch a simulated attack on a real Russian submarine. As a result of all these safety measures and restrictions, the ASW forces were able to locate "Skipjack" almost 50 percent of the time.

At the end of the year "Skipjack" transferred to the submarine base at Groton in preparation for a refueling overhaul at Electric Boat Division. After conducting a few more exercises, "Skipjack" entered the shipyard for overhaul in the summer of 1974 and remained inactive until the fall of 1976.

Decommissioning in 1990

"Skipjack" was decommissioned and stricken from the Naval Vessel Register on 19 April 1990. ex-"Skipjack" entered the Nuclear Powered Ship and Submarine Recycling Program in Bremerton, Washington, on 17 March 1996 and on 1 September 1998 ceased to exist.

References

* Sherry Sontag, Christopher Drew, Annette Lawrence Drew, "" (PublicAffairs, 1998) ISBN 0-06-103004-X

External links

* [http://history.navy.mil/danfs/s13/skipjack-ii.htm history.navy.mil: USS "Skipjack"]
* [http://www.navsource.org/archives/08/08585.htm navsource.org: USS "Skipjack"]
* [http://www.hazegray.org/danfs/submar/ssn585.htm hazegray.org: USS "Skipjack"]
* [http://www.archive.org/details/1959-04-13_At_Sea USS "Skipjack" nuclear sub sea trials] , a Universal Newsreel excerpt, from the Internet Archive