USS Columbus (SSN-762)

Columbus performing an Emergency main ballast tank blow in 1998
History
Name: USS Columbus
Namesake: The City of Columbus, Ohio
Awarded: 21 March 1986
Builder: General Dynamics Electric Boat
Laid down: 9 January 1991
Launched: 1 August 1992
Commissioned: 24 July 1993
Homeport: Pearl Harbor
Status: in active service
Badge:
General characteristics
Class and type: Los Angeles-class submarine
Displacement:
  • 6,000 long tons (6,096 t) light
  • 6,927 long tons (7,038 t) full
  • 927 long tons (942 t) dead
Length: 110.3 m (361 ft 11 in)
Beam: 10 m (32 ft 10 in)
Draft: 9.4 m (30 ft 10 in)
Propulsion: S6G nuclear reactor
Speed:
  • Surfaced:20 knots (23 mph; 37 km/h)
  • Submerged: +20 knots (23 mph; 37 km/h) (official)
Complement: 12 officers, 98 men
Sensors and
processing systems:		 BQQ-5 passive sonar, BQS-15 detecting and ranging sonar, WLR-8 fire control radar receiver, WLR-9 acoustic receiver for detection of active search sonar and acoustic homing torpedoes, BRD-7 radio direction finder
Armament: 4 × 21 in (533 mm) bow tubes, 10 Mk48 ADCAP torpedo reloads, Tomahawk land attack missile block 3 SLCM range 1,700 nautical miles (3,100 km), Harpoon anti–surface ship missile range 70 nautical miles (130 km), mine laying Mk67 mobile Mk60 captor mines

USS Columbus (SSN-762) is a Los Angeles-class nuclear powered fast attack submarine and the second ship of the United States Navy to be named for Columbus, Ohio. The contract to build her was awarded to the Electric Boat Division of General Dynamics Corporation in Groton, Connecticut on 21 March 1986 and her keel was laid down on 9 January 1991. She was launched on 1 August 1992 sponsored by Mrs. Margaret DeMars, and commissioned on 24 July 1993.

Operational history

Columbus completed a Post Shipyard Availability in June 1994 in Groton, Connecticut after initial construction and shakedown operations. In September 1994, the ship conducted an interfleet transfer to Pearl Harbor, Hawaii and joined the U.S. Pacific Fleet Submarine Force. Columbus deployed to the Western Pacific in late 1995 through early 1996 and conducted a variety of operations as a unit of the Seventh Fleet along the way making port visits in Hong Kong, Subic Bay, Guam, and Yokosuka, Japan.[1]

Columbus was the first Submarine equipped with the BYG-1 Fire Control System in December 2002.[2] Two successful test launches of Tactical Tomahawk (Block IV) cruise missiles were conducted in late May 2003 from Columbus, while underway in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of Southern California.[3] Columbus departed Pearl Harbor for another western Pacific deployment in late 2003,[4] and visited Jinhae-gu, South Korea, Singapore, and Japan while taking part in Annual-Ex 2003 (exercise) with various units of the Japanese Maritime Self-Defense Force.[5]

Following a modernization refit at the Puget Sound Naval Shipyard from 2004-2006 in Bremerton, Washington, Columbus returned to Submarine Squadron Seven in Pearl Harbor and departed Pearl Harbor in March 2008 for a regularly scheduled six-month deployment. Deployed with the Seventh Fleet, Columbus supported national taskings and theater security cooperation efforts while making port visits in Saipan, Guam, Okinawa, Sasebo, and Yokosuka, Japan.[6] In January 2009 Columbus was awarded the Submarine Squadron 7 Battle Efficiency (Battle "E") award, given to the submarine crew that best demonstrates technical proficiency and continual mission readiness throughout the previous year.[7]

In July 2009, the Chief of Naval Operations announced that the ship was the Pacific Fleet winner of the Calendar Year 2008 Arleigh Burke Fleet Trophy.[8]

Columbus returned to Pearl Harbor, Hawaii in August 2012 after completing a six-month deployment that included Seventh Fleet and national mission tasking along with port visits to Japan, South Korea, and Guam.[9] Columbus arrived in the South Korean southern port city of Busan 3 March 2014 as a part of a scheduled deployment in the Western Pacific.[10] In September 2017, Columbus returned to Pearl Harbor from a six-month deployment having performing three national tasking periods, two theater operation periods, and a multinational exercise. Columbus also enjoyed four port visits, including Singapore and Guam. [11]

Awards

1995
Pacific Fleet Golden Anchor Award
Red Engineering "E"
Yellow Medical "M"
1996
Meritorious Unit Commendation [12]
1997
Supply Blue "E"
1998
Pacific Fleet Silver Anchor Award
Engineering "E"
Deck Seamanship [13]
2002
Red Green Navigational "N"
2003
Navy Unit Commendation
Tactical "T"
Communications "C"
2004
Medical "M" [14]
2008
Department of the Navy Safety Excellence Award [15]
Damage Control 'DC', Navigation 'N', Communications 'C', and Supply Blue 'E' [16]
Arleigh Burke Fleet Trophy [8]
Squadron 7 Battle "E" Efficiency Award [17]
Meritorious Unit Commendation
2012
Squadron 7 Battle "E" Efficiency Award [18]
2014
Communications 'C', Information Dominance 'I', and Weapons 'W'

References

  1. ↑ Command history. USS COLUMBUS (SSN 762), Department of the Navy, 7 Mar 97
  2. ↑ Ship's history. USS COLUMBUS (SSN 762), Department of the Navy, 12 Sep 2003
  3. ↑ Schroeder, Sandra. "Submarine USS Columbus Launches Tomahawks in West Coast Tests". Navy.mil. Retrieved 2010-03-26.
  4. ↑ Journalist, Chief. "USS Columbus Deploys to Western Pacific". Navy.mil. Retrieved 2010-03-26.
  5. ↑ Command history. USS COLUMBUS (SSN 762), Department of the Navy, 1 Apr 2005
  6. ↑ Communication, Mass (13 September 2008). "USS Columbus Returns to Pearl Harbor". Navy.mil. Retrieved 2010-03-26.
  7. ↑ "Commander, Submarine Force U.S. Pacific Fleet | Official Military Website". Csp.navy.mil. 14 October 2003. Archived from the original on 6 June 2011. Retrieved 26 March 2010.
  8. 1 2 CALENDAR YEAR 2008 ARLEIGH BURKE FLEET TROPHY AWARD RECIPIENTS, ADMIRAL G. ROUGHEAD, CHIEF OF NAVAL OPERATIONS
  9. ↑ "Columbus Completes Deployment". Hookele News. Retrieved December 1, 2017.
  10. ↑ "习近平发表人类命运共同体演讲一周年：为未来谱新篇". Archived from the original on 2017-01-02.
  11. ↑ "USS Columbus Returns Home From Deployment". DVIDS. September 1, 2017. Retrieved November 30, 2017.
  12. ↑ Command history. USS COLUMBUS (SSN 762), Department of the Navy, 01 Mar 98
  13. ↑ Command history. USS COLUMBUS (SSN 762), Department of the Navy, 31 Mar 99
  14. ↑ "The Northwest Navigator > Email to a Friend". Web.soundpublishing.com. 1 October 2004. Archived from the original on 16 July 2011. Retrieved 26 March 2010.
  15. ↑ "2008 DON Safety Excellence Award Recipients Announced". Ctf74.navy.mil. 22 August 2008. Archived from the original on 22 July 2011. Retrieved 26 March 2010.
  16. ↑ "THE BATTLE 'E' WINNERS! « Anything But Dependent Blog". Theycallmedependent.wordpress.com. 10 January 2009. Retrieved 2010-03-26.
  17. ↑ http://www.navy.mil/submit/display.asp?story_id=41680
  18. ↑ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 1 February 2015. Retrieved 1 February 2015.

This article includes information collected from the public domain sources Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships and Naval Vessel Register.


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