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USS Dace (SSN 607)

USS DACE was one of the PERMIT - class nuclear-powered attack submarines and the second ship in the Navy to bear the name. Both decommissioned and stricken from the Navy list on December 2, 1988, the DACE spent the following years berthed at the Puget Sound Naval Shipyard, Bremerton Wash., until the submarine entered the Navy's Nuclear Powered Ship and Submarine Recycling Program there. Recycling of the USS DACE was completed on January 17, 1997.

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Crew List:

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

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Accidents aboard USS DACE:

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USS DACE History:

USS DACE was contracted on March 3, 1959, and laid down on June 6, 1960, at Ingalls Shipbuilding in Pascagoula, Mississippi. She was a PERMIT-class nuclear-powered attack submarine and the second United States Navy ship to bear the name Dace, following the World War II submarine USS DACE (SS 247). The name referred to several small North American freshwater fishes of the carp family. The earlier USS DACE had served in the Pacific War, completed seven successful war patrols, and was credited with sinking nine enemy vessels and damaging others before being decommissioned after the war, recommissioned in 1951, and transferred to the Italian Navy in 1955 as LEONARDO DA VINCI. The new nuclear-powered USS DACE carried the name into the Cold War submarine force, where quiet operation, sonar performance, long submerged endurance, and the ability to evaluate new weapons and tactics were central to American undersea planning.

USS DACE belonged to the THRESHER/PERMIT design line, later known as the PERMIT-class after the loss of USS THRESHER (SSN 593) in April 1963. The class followed the high-speed SKIPJACK generation but emphasized quieter operation, greater depth capability, a large bow sonar installation, and torpedo tubes placed farther aft to keep the bow available for sonar. USS DACE was built for a mission set that included antisubmarine warfare, undersea weapons development, fleet exercises, classified operations, and service as a demanding target for surface ships, aircraft, and other submarines practicing detection and attack against modern nuclear-powered submarines.

USS DACE was launched on August 18, 1962, sponsored by Betty Ford, wife of Representative Gerald R. Ford Jr. of Michigan and later First Lady of the United States. After fitting out, trials, and pre-commissioning work in the Gulf of Mexico and at Pascagoula, she was photographed underway on April 2, 1964, shortly before entering service. She was commissioned on April 4, 1964, with Commander John A. Walsh in command. After commissioning, USS DACE was assigned to Submarine Development Group Two, based at New London, Connecticut. That assignment shaped the first part of her career. Rather than moving immediately into a conventional deployment cycle, she worked within the Navy's development community, where submarines evaluated tactics, sonar systems, weapons-system components, and procedures intended to improve the performance of the nuclear-powered attack-submarine force.

During her early years in Submarine Development Group Two, USS DACE contributed to the continuing program that established the antisubmarine warfare capability of the Navy's newer nuclear submarines. Her work helped test and refine procedures and equipment that later became part of the standard operating practices of first-line attack submarines. USS DACE operated from New London, took part in special operations and evaluation work, and served in the developmental environment that connected the PERMIT-class design to practical Cold War tactics. In this period, the United States Navy was expanding its nuclear submarine force while responding to the growth of Soviet undersea capabilities. The Vietnam War drew large visible naval forces to the western Pacific, but the Atlantic submarine force remained focused on the Soviet submarine threat, new sonar systems, and undersea weapons development.

On October 1, 1967, USS DACE joined Submarine Squadron Ten, Submarine Division 102. Submarine Squadron Ten was an important New London-based organization for nuclear-powered attack submarines, and the transfer placed USS DACE in a more standard Atlantic Fleet submarine structure while preserving her developmental and operational value. During underway activities in November 1967, she called at Bermuda. For operations in late 1967, her crew earned the Navy Unit Commendation, and Commander Kinnaird R. McKee, her commanding officer, received the Legion of Merit. The award record indicates that the submarine's work was of unusually high operational value, though the exact details of those operations remain outside the public record.

From January 22 to February 1, 1968, USS DACE participated in SubASWEx 1-68, an antisubmarine warfare exercise in the Gulf of Maine conducted for Submarine Development Group Two. The exercise was designed to assess the effectiveness of PERMIT- and STURGEON-class boats and included USS SEAWOLF (SSN 575), USS CLAMAGORE (SS 343), USS TENCH (SS 417), and USS STURGEON (SSN 637). The Gulf of Maine provided cold-water North Atlantic conditions relevant to the wider Cold War problem of detecting and tracking submarines in waters leading toward the Greenland-Iceland-United Kingdom gap and the northern approaches. USS DACE's participation showed how she continued to serve as a platform for evaluating submarine-versus-submarine and antisubmarine warfare procedures.

On March 4, 1968, USS DACE departed New London for a special operation for Commander Submarine Force, U.S. Atlantic Fleet. After two months at sea, she briefly stopped at the United States Navy Underwater Sound Laboratory at New London on May 4, where a calibration and reference hydrophone was installed. She then completed sonar calibration and acoustic-level measurement in the Atlantic with USS TUSK (SS 426), returning to State Pier at New London on May 9. The sequence connected a classified or special operational assignment with technical acoustic evaluation, a pattern typical of a submarine assigned to work at the boundary between fleet operations and tactical development.

From June 6 to June 8, 1968, USS DACE conducted a special demonstration of the capabilities of a PERMIT-class submarine against a high-speed boat, represented in the exercise by USS SHARK (SSN 591). Dr. John S. Foster, Assistant Secretary of Defense, and other representatives from the Secretary's office and from Submarine Development Group Two embarked in USS DACE to observe. The demonstration took place at a time when senior defense officials were closely interested in undersea warfare, Soviet submarine performance, and the weapons and sensors needed to maintain American advantages below the surface. For her performance in this period, USS DACE received continued recognition: she earned another Navy Unit Commendation, a third consecutive Fire Control Excellence Award, and a fourth consecutive Battle Efficiency "E" for 1968, while Commander McKee received a Gold Star in lieu of a second Legion of Merit for the spring 1968 operations.

Between October 1968 and June 1969, USS DACE underwent overhaul at the Electric Boat Division of General Dynamics at Groton, Connecticut. The work updated and refurbished sonar, fire-control, and communications equipment. The overhaul also served as a test of a shorter nine-month refurbishment period in place of a normal eighteen-month availability. That experiment reflected the Navy's desire to keep high-demand nuclear attack submarines operational while still providing necessary modernization and repair. In July 1969, after completing the overhaul period, USS DACE rejoined Submarine Squadron Ten and resumed the role of testing and developing new submarine tactics and equipment.

In the second half of 1969, USS DACE conducted sonar calibrations, sound trials, and weapons-system alignments at the Atlantic Undersea Test and Evaluation Center range in the Tongue of the Ocean in the Bahamas and in Caribbean test areas associated with the Virgin Islands and St. Croix. These ranges allowed controlled measurement of sonar and weapons performance under conditions useful for tactical development. In January 1970, USS DACE deployed to the Mediterranean and remained there until May, taking part in special operations for the Sixth Fleet. The Mediterranean was a central Cold War maritime theater, with Soviet naval activity increasing in the region and the Sixth Fleet responsible for the southern flank of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, crisis response, and continuous presence in waters bounded by southern Europe, North Africa, and the Middle East. After returning from the Mediterranean, USS DACE spent the remainder of 1970 developing and evaluating undersea warfare tactics.

From January 25 to February 7, 1971, USS DACE completed LantFlEx 71 and RimEx 2-71 in the western Atlantic. She then took part in two operational tests of the Subroc weapons system off Roosevelt Roads, Puerto Rico, from February 13 to February 17 and again from March 5 to March 10. Subroc was a torpedo-tube-launched antisubmarine missile designed to carry a weapon rapidly to the vicinity of a distant submarine contact. Its operational testing connected sonar detection, fire-control calculation, and longer-range underwater attack capability, all central issues for the Cold War submarine force.

On March 10, 1971, USS DACE began a twelve-day transit to the Mediterranean. After arriving in the Sixth Fleet area, she conducted special operations through April 25. Operating with Task Group 60.1, she then took part in antisubmarine operations in the eastern Mediterranean from May 2 to May 13. The eastern Mediterranean was strategically important because of Soviet naval presence, tensions around the Middle East, and allied concerns over submarine activity in confined and heavily trafficked waters. From May 26 to May 30, USS DACE participated in Exercise National Week IX, one of the recurring Sixth Fleet exercises used to test readiness, coordination, and response in the Mediterranean. She then resumed special operations for the Sixth Fleet from June 9 to June 19. She began her transatlantic return on June 30 and arrived back at New London on July 7, 1971.

After a post-deployment standdown, USS DACE resumed a demanding local and fleet-exercise schedule. From August 12 to August 14, 1971, she operated in the Narragansett Bay area conducting a technical evaluation of the Type 18 periscope system with the Naval Underwater Sound Laboratory at New London. From August 16 to August 27, she carried out submarine-versus-submarine type training with USS TULLIBEE (SSN 597) in the same general operating area. In September, she participated in SubASWEx 1-72 in the western Atlantic from September 7 to September 27. She then worked with USS CHARLES P. CECIL (DD 835) in the Narragansett Bay area from September 27 to October 1, continuing the operational evaluation of the Type 18 periscope system. From October 21 to October 27, she assisted Task Group 27.4 with an aircraft-carrier evaluation exercise in the western Atlantic.

In November 1971, USS DACE served as a training ship for prospective submarine commanding officers. From November 1 to November 7, she conducted type training with USS BILLFISH (SSN 676) in the Narragansett Bay operating area. From November 8 to November 13, she participated in an operational evaluation of AN/SQS-35 and AN/SQS-26CX sonars for Commander Cruiser-Destroyer Force Atlantic. From November 15 to November 24, she rounded out the month with SubEx Kilo 1-72 in the western Atlantic. For overall operational excellence in 1971, USS DACE again earned the Battle Efficiency "E".

On December 29, 1971, while at New London, USS DACE inadvertently discharged about 500 gallons of water used as reactor coolant into the Thames River during a routine water transfer between the submarine and USS FULTON (AS 11). The Navy reported that measurements in the area on the following day showed no increase in environmental radioactivity and stated that the water contained only a very small amount of radioactivity.

During much of 1972, as USS DACE prepared for and then carried out another Mediterranean deployment, she continued evaluating the Type 18 periscope system during underway operations. From January 19 to February 7, she completed SubASWEx 2-72 in the western Atlantic. In April, she trained with USS GREENLING (SSN 614) from April 3 to April 7 and with USS TINOSA (SSN 606) from April 17 to April 21 in the Narragansett Bay operating area. On May 3, 1972, USS DACE departed New London for the Mediterranean.

For most of the 1972 Mediterranean deployment, USS DACE conducted special operations for the Sixth Fleet. She also carried out antisubmarine operations from June 11 to June 15. For special operations conducted from May 12 to August 7, USS DACE received another Navy Unit Commendation, and Commander Thomas E. Nolan, her commanding officer, received the Legion of Merit. USS DACE returned to New London on September 2, 1972, and concluded the operational evaluation of the Type 18 periscope system on September 10. For her achievements during 1972, she again received the Battle Efficiency "E", her seventh such award in her first eight years of commissioned service.

On October 16, 1972, USS DACE entered the Electric Boat Division of General Dynamics at Groton for an extensive overhaul. The overhaul continued through all of 1973 and 1974. This long yard period removed her from fleet operations while major maintenance, inspection, repair, and modernization work were performed.

During sea trials on the night of March 24, 1975, while operating with the submarine rescue ship USS TRINGA (ASR 16), USS DACE collided with the fishing vessel MARS approximately seventy-five miles south of Martha's Vineyard, Massachusetts. Neither vessel sustained significant damage. On April 10, 1975, at the conclusion of the refit period, USS DACE began post-overhaul shakedown testing before resuming regular operations.

On April 28, 1975, USS DACE departed New London to complete weapons-system accuracy tests and acoustic trials. During that underway period, she made port calls at Roosevelt Roads, Puerto Rico, and at Port Everglades and Cape Kennedy, Florida, in May. She returned to New London in June for routine upkeep. Sailing south again in July, she completed Mark 48 torpedo firing exercises and Subroc operational tests and called at Norfolk, Virginia. In August, she returned to New London for additional work and training. These operations restored the ship and crew to full operational rhythm after the long Electric Boat overhaul.

After an operation for Commander Submarine Force, Atlantic Fleet during the first week of November 1975, USS DACE deployed to the Mediterranean from November 28, 1975, to May 25, 1976. During the opening phase of the deployment, she conducted three operations from December 8 to December 29, then moored next to USS HOWARD W. GILMORE (AS 16) at La Maddalena, Sardinia, for four weeks of maintenance from December 29, 1975, to January 28, 1976. La Maddalena had become a key forward support point for American nuclear-powered submarines in the Mediterranean, allowing upkeep close to Sixth Fleet operating areas. During the rest of the deployment, USS DACE returned to La Maddalena for another upkeep period with USS HOWARD W. GILMORE from March 18 to April 14. She also visited Naples, Italy, in February and May, and called at La Spezia, Italy, in May. The deployment returned her to the familiar Sixth Fleet environment of NATO operations, Soviet naval presence, and regional tension in southern Europe and the Mediterranean.

After post-deployment standdown, USS DACE returned to operations. In July 1976, she made a port call at Port Everglades. On August 31, she departed on another overseas movement, this time for North Atlantic Treaty Organization Exercise Teamwork 76. Between exercise phases she called at Haakonsvern, Norway, in September and at Faslane, Scotland, in October. Teamwork 76 placed her in the North Atlantic and northern European operating environment central to NATO reinforcement planning, sea control, and antisubmarine warfare. She returned to New London on October 24. In November, she underwent interim drydocking followed by a Board of Inspection and Survey inspection, and she operated locally for the remainder of the year.

During the early months of 1977, USS DACE participated in Chief of Naval Operations Project K243, involving the Long Range Torpedo Homing System. On March 15, 1977, she departed for another Mediterranean deployment. During this cruise, she participated in several operations for the Sixth Fleet. She stopped at Rota, Spain, in March and held tender availabilities with USS HOWARD W. GILMORE at La Maddalena from May 7 to June 6 and again from July 5 to July 25. She also called at Naples in August before beginning the return voyage to New London, where she arrived on August 18. USS DACE received the Meritorious Unit Commendation for work in the Mediterranean during June and July in support of Commander Sixth Fleet antisubmarine warfare objectives. The award recognized operations that improved combat readiness and expanded knowledge of the tactical capabilities and limitations of submarine platforms and sensors.

After standdown and upkeep late in 1977, USS DACE resumed underway operations. In October she participated in Chief of Naval Operations Projects 130 and 221, both involving mines, and made a stop at Port Everglades during that mission. In November, she took part in Operation Small Intake. In December, she participated in Chief of Naval Operations Project 149, involving Mark 46 development, and in MARCOT 3-77, a joint exercise with the Canadian Navy. These projects show that USS DACE remained a heavily used technical and operational platform, not merely a deployed fleet unit.

From January through April 1978, USS DACE periodically participated again in Chief of Naval Operations Project K243. In February, she took part in ASWEx 1-78 with USS TREPANG (SSN 674). From February 28 to March 17, she participated in North Atlantic Treaty Organization Operation Safepass 1-78, also with USS TREPANG, followed by Operation Solid Barrier from April 1 to April 24. These activities placed her in a sequence of antisubmarine and allied exercises focused on convoy routes, sea-lane security, and the problem of detecting and countering submarines in Atlantic waters.

On July 6, 1978, USS DACE departed on a relatively short Mediterranean deployment. Later that month, she participated in National Week exercises. During the deployment she conducted several operations for the Sixth Fleet, had a tender availability with USS HOWARD W. GILMORE from August 14 to September 2, and made port calls at Rota; La Spezia from August 8 to August 12; and Naples from September 18 to September 21. On the evening of September 24, while operating in the Strait of Gibraltar, USS DACE struck an unknown surface vessel after submerging to periscope depth. She sustained minor superficial damage, and no crew members were injured. She returned to New London on October 10, 1978, completing her sixth Mediterranean deployment.

As USS DACE prepared for a home-port change and another major overhaul, she continued a busy operational schedule in the first half of 1979. From January 17 to February 8, she participated in ReadEx 1-79. During that exercise she also took part in Chief of Naval Operations Project 160-1 from January 27 to January 29 and completed a Mark 48 exercise from February 2 to February 4. From March 6 to March 12, she called at Port Canaveral, Florida. From June 11 to June 15, she welcomed midshipmen for summer training, and from June 18 to July 7 she was underway for Chief of Naval Operations Project Fox II.

Effective July 17, 1979, Vallejo, California, became USS DACE's home port of record in advance of a scheduled major overhaul at Mare Island Naval Shipyard. During the transit to the West Coast, she called at Port Canaveral from August 20 to August 23, St. John's, Antigua, from August 26 to August 30, and Roosevelt Roads from August 31 to September 21. She reached the Pacific through the Panama Canal on September 25 and temporarily joined Submarine Squadron Three on September 28. She arrived at Mare Island on October 8, and her overhaul began two weeks later.

The Mare Island overhaul was one of the major modernization periods of USS DACE's career. During this extensive yard period she received a major combat-system conversion to the Mark 117 fire-control system and the AN/BQQ-5(A) sonar system. She also received SubSafe certification, reflecting the Navy's continuing effort to maintain hull integrity, watertight reliability, and recovery capability in nuclear-powered submarines. USS DACE emerged from drydock in mid-1980 and then began a rigorous overhaul test program. The overhaul was completed on August 21, 1981. Although her home port was officially shifted back to New London as of August 1, 1981, she remained at Vallejo through the end of that year.

USS DACE returned to the administrative control of Submarine Squadron Ten on January 25, 1982, and arrived back at New London on February 16. She then began an extensive period of evaluations and pre-deployment workups. During 1982, she completed weapons-system accuracy tests, acoustic trials, Mark 48 torpedo proficiency firings, sonar-system certification, UGM-84 Harpoon antiship-missile-system certification, tactical readiness evaluation, and pre-overseas movement certification. These certifications reflected the modernization she had received at Mare Island and prepared her for renewed deployed service as an older but significantly updated PERMIT-class submarine.

On December 27, 1982, USS DACE deployed to the Mediterranean. She returned home on May 20, 1983. After post-deployment leave and upkeep, USS DACE conducted three midshipmen training cruises, a VIP cruise, and a dependents' cruise during the summer of 1983. She also completed a Board of Inspection and Survey inspection and received a new fire-control program. During a Selected Restricted Availability that ended on November 14, maintenance included replacement of the sonar spherical array, refurbishment of the torpedo tubes, and replacement of her 43-kilowatt motor generator. In December, however, she returned to drydock for emergency repairs to damaged fuel oil tanks and main ballast tanks. For her performance during 1983, USS DACE received the Battle Efficiency "E".

After emerging from drydock in late February 1984 following repairs costing about $1.5 million, USS DACE began preparations for another deployment. From April 4 to April 17, she participated in COMPTUEX 84. On July 23, 1984, she again got underway for the Mediterranean. During the deployment, she completed antisubmarine operations with the Sixth Fleet and took part in the North Atlantic Treaty Organization exercises SHAREM 84 and Display Determination. She made port calls at Naples and Athens, Greece, and completed two upkeep periods at La Maddalena. USS DACE returned to New London on December 19, 1984. For the second consecutive year, she received the Battle Efficiency "E" for Submarine Squadron Ten.

After post-deployment standdown and upkeep, USS DACE departed New London on February 4, 1985, operating locally and in the Atlantic and Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, operating areas over the following month. After returning home, she had a maintenance availability at the Naval Submarine Support Facility in Groton. On April 14, she again got underway, operating locally and in the Guantanamo Bay area for seventeen days, then completed four weeks of upkeep and more local operations. In July 1985, USS DACE set course for the Bahamas to conduct acoustic trials in the Tongue of the Ocean and Mark 48 and Harpoon exercises at the Atlantic Undersea Test and Evaluation Center range. During the Mark 48 exercise firings, torpedo tube number three short-cycled on launch, causing a hot run inside the tube. The submarine spent four days at Fort Lauderdale before returning home for two weeks of upkeep.

In August 1985, USS DACE sailed to the North Atlantic to participate in the North Atlantic Treaty Organization exercise Ocean Safari 85, returning to New London on September 23. Ocean Safari exercises focused on North Atlantic sea control, reinforcement routes, and antisubmarine warfare in waters that would have been central in a NATO-Warsaw Pact conflict. On September 27, Hurricane Gloria struck the Connecticut coastline. USS DACE remained in port at Submarine Base New London because of material problems. From September 30 to December 1, she completed a Selected Restricted Availability at New London, followed by sea trials in early December and preparations for her next deployment. She completed pre-overseas movement certification on February 22, 1986.

USS DACE departed New London on March 3, 1986, for the Mediterranean. While operating with the Sixth Fleet, she participated in operations off Libya. In company with USS DALLAS (SSN 700), she helped contain the threat from Libyan Soviet-built FOXTROT-class diesel-electric submarines while American air and surface forces engaged Libyan air, surface, and land targets during Operation Attain Document III in March and Operation El Dorado Canyon in April. These operations took place during a major confrontation between the United States and Libya over freedom of navigation, terrorism, and Libyan military activity in the central Mediterranean. For her contributions to keeping the Libyan undersea threat contained, USS DACE received the Navy Unit Commendation, and her crew members were authorized to wear the Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal. She returned to State Pier in New London on July 24, 1986. After post-deployment leave and upkeep, she participated in FleetEx 4-86 from October 15 to November 11 and otherwise operated locally through January 1987.

In preparation for another deployment, USS DACE got underway on January 29, 1987, for FleetEx 1-87, which continued through March 10. She then participated in FleetEx 2-87 from May 11 to June 12. On July 13, she sailed south to join UNITAS 28-87, the annual training cruise that exercised United States Navy units with multiple South American navies. Other United States participants in the 1987 UNITAS force included USS ARTHUR W. RADFORD (DD 968), USS BARNSTABLE COUNTY (LST 1197), USS JOHN KING (DDG 3), USS DE WERT (FFG 45), and USS SCULPIN (SSN 590). UNITAS deployments combined multinational antisubmarine warfare training, communications drills, surface and air coordination, and regional cooperation. In late September, USS DACE completed an antisubmarine warfare exercise with USS ARTHUR W. RADFORD and then detached from the UNITAS force to return to New London, arriving on October 7. For her work in 1987, USS DACE again received the Battle Efficiency "E".

After returning from UNITAS, USS DACE prepared for transfer to the West Coast and deactivation. On January 13, 1988, she made her last trip down the Thames River from Naval Submarine Base New London and set course for Puget Sound Naval Shipyard at Bremerton, Washington. The final voyage took her through the Panama Canal, then south across the Equator for the traditional line-crossing ceremony, and included a four-day pause at San Diego. She arrived at Naval Submarine Base Bangor on February 24, 1988. Three days later, a ceremony marked her inactivation. Attendees included Admiral Kinnaird R. McKee, Director of the Naval Nuclear Propulsion Program and USS DACE's commanding officer from 1966 to 1969, and retired Rear Admiral John A. Walsh, her first commanding officer.

On March 4, 1988, USS DACE was towed to Puget Sound Naval Shipyard at Bremerton, where she served as the test platform for a Naval Sea Systems Command nuclear-propulsion-directed special hull test. After that testing was completed, the crew removed reusable equipment and offloaded spare parts to complete the inactivation process. USS DACE was decommissioned and stricken from the Naval Vessel Register on December 2, 1988. Her active service had lasted twenty-four years, seven months, and twenty-eight days. Her award record included multiple Navy Unit Commendations, a Meritorious Unit Commendation, repeated Battle Efficiency "E" awards, and a Golden Anchor award for fleet-unit service.

After decommissioning, ex-DACE remained within the Navy's nuclear-powered ship disposal process. The Navy/Department of Energy recycling table records reactor-compartment disposal for ex-DACE as completed in 1989 and ship recycling as completed in 1997.

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