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USS Hyman G. Rickover (SSN 709)

- decommissioned -



USS HYMAN G. RICKOVER was the 22nd LOS ANGELES class attack submarine and the 17th ship in that class built by Electric Boat in Groton, CT.

General Characteristics:Awarded: December 10, 1973
Keel Laid: July 24, 1981
Launched: August 27, 1983
Commissioned: July 21, 1984
Decommissioned: December 17, 2007
Builder: Electric Boat Division of General Dynamics Corporation, Groton, CT
Propulsion system: one nuclear reactor
Propellers: one
Length: 360 feet (109.73 meters)
Beam: 33 feet (10 meters)
Draft: 32,15 feet (9.8 meters)
Displacement: Surfaced: approx. 6,000 tons
Submerged: approx. 6,900 tons
Speed: Surfaced: approx. 15 knots
Submerged: approx. 32 knots
Armament: four 533 mm torpedo tubes for Mk-48 torpedoes, Harpoon and Tomahawk missiles
Cost: approx. $900 million
Crew: 12 Officers, 115 Enlisted


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Crew List:

This section contains the names of sailors who served aboard USS HYMAN G. RICKOVER. It is no official listing but contains the names of sailors who submitted their information.


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USS HYMAN G. RICKOVER Patch Gallery:



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About the Ship’s Name:

Admiral Rickover, the Father of the Nuclear Navy, was born in Makow, Russia (which is now Poland) on January 27, 1900. At the age of six, he emigrated with his parents to the United States, settling in Chicago, Illinois. Admiral Rickover entered the U.S. Naval Academy in 1918 and was commissioned an ensign in June 1922.

Following sea duty aboard USS LA VALLETTE (DD-315) and USS NEVADA (BB-36), Admiral Rickover attended Columbia University, where he earned the degree of Master of Science in Electrical Engineering. From 1929 to 1933, he qualified for submarine duty and command aboard the submarines S-9 and S-48. In June 1937, he assumed command of USS FINCH. Later that year, he was selected as an Engineering Duty Officer and spent the remainder of his career serving in that specialty.

During World War II, Admiral Rickover served as Head of the Electrical Section of the Bureau of Ships and later as Commanding Officer of the Naval Repair Base, Okinawa. In 1946, he was assigned to the Atomic Energy Commission laboratory at Oak Ridge, Tennessee and, in early 1949, to the Division of Reactor Development, U.S. Atomic Energy Commission.

As director of the Naval Reactors Branch, Admiral Rickover developed the world's first nuclear powered submarine, USS NAUTILUS (SSN 571), which went to sea in 1955. In the years that followed, Admiral Rickover directed all aspects of building and operating the nuclear fleet.

Admiral Rickover's numerous medals and decorations include the Distinguished Service Medal, Legion of Merit, Navy Commendation Medal, and the World War II Victory Medal. In recognition of his wartime service, he was made Honorary Commander of the Military Division of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire.

Admiral Rickover was twice awarded the Congressional Gold Medal for exceptional public service. In 1980, President Jimmy Carter presented Admiral Rickover with the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the nation's highest non-military honor, for his contributions to world peace.

Admiral Rickover retired from the United States Navy on January 31, 1982, after over 63 years of service to his country and to 13 Presidents. His name is memorialized in the attack submarine USS HYMAN G. RICKOVER (SSN 709) and Rickover Hall at the U.S. Naval Academy. Admiral Rickover died on July 8, 1986 and is buried in Arlington National Cemetery.


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The photo below was taken by me and shows a number of decommissioned nuclear-powered attack submarines laid up at the Puget Sound Naval Shipyard, Bremerton, Wash. The photo was taken from Port Orchard, Wash., on May 12, 2012. The submarines' names are on the photo.



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