_departs_Souda_Bay_harbor_following_a_brief_port_visit._Dallas_is_homported_in_Groton%2c_Conn.%2c_and_currently_on_a_routine_deployment.jpg) Dallas carrying aDry Deck Shelter in 2004. | |
| History | |
|---|---|
 United States | |
| Name | USSDallas |
| Namesake | Dallas, Texas |
| Awarded | 31 January 1973 |
| Builder | General Dynamics Corporation |
| Laid down | 9 October 1976 |
| Launched | 28 April 1979 |
| Commissioned | 18 July 1981 |
| Decommissioned | 4 April 2018[1] |
| Out of service | 22 May 2017 |
| Stricken | 4 April 2018 |
| Homeport | Groton, Connecticut |
| Motto | First in Harm's Way |
| Nickname(s) | Big D |
| Status | Stricken, pending final disposal |
| Badge |  |
| General characteristics | |
| Class & type | Los Angeles-classsubmarine |
| Displacement | 6,900 tons |
| 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 |
| Complement | 127 |
| Armament | 4 × 21 in (533 mm)torpedo tubes |
USSDallas (SSN-700) was aLos Angeles-classnuclear-poweredattack submarine of theUnited States Navy. She was the Navy's second vessel of that name, and the first to be named after the city ofDallas, Texas. The firstDallas, adestroyer, was named for 19th century US Naval officer CaptainAlexander Dallas. Another two ships with the name were scheduled but never completed. On 4 April 2018, after nearly 37 years of commissioned service, the boat was decommissioned at the Controlled Industrial Area ofPuget Sound Naval Shipyard. The defueled vessel will eventually undergorecycling.[1][2]
The contract to buildDallas was awarded to theElectric Boat Division ofGeneral Dynamics Corporation inGroton, Connecticut, on 31 October 1973 and her keel was laid down on 9 October 1976. She waslaunched on 28 April 1979, sponsored by Mrs.Rita Crocker Clements, wife of former Deputy Secretary of DefenseBill Clements, andcommissioned on 18 July 1981.[3]Dallas was the first submarine of theLos Angeles class to be originally built with an all-digital fire control (tracking and weapon) system and sonar system. After commissioning,Dallas was attached toSubmarine Development Squadron 12 inNew London, Connecticut, where she was involved in research and development projects.[citation needed]
On 27 August 1981Dallas damaged her lower rudder when she ran aground while approaching theAtlantic Undersea Test and Evaluation Center site atAndros Island, Bahamas. The submarine worked herself free after several hours and returned on the surface to New London, Connecticut, for repairs.[citation needed]
From September 1988Dallas was a member ofSubmarine Squadron 2, New London. During her time with Squadron 2, she completed the first ever Depot Modernization Period and various overseas deployments.[citation needed]
Dallas completed anEngineered Refueling Overhaul (ERO) at thePortsmouth Naval Shipyard inKittery, Maine, in 1998. The D1G-2 core was replaced with a D2W core.Dallas has had a removableDry Deck Shelter for over a decade.[4] This large chamber, fitted aft of the sail, has an array of air, water and hydraulic systems that allowDallas to employ theSwimmer Delivery Vehicle, a highly mobile and virtually undetectable means of carrying outspecial forces missions.[citation needed]
Dallas has completed one deployment to the Indian Ocean, fourMediterranean Sea deployments, two Persian Gulf deployments, and seven deployments to the North Atlantic.[citation needed]
_returning_to_Groton_after_final_deployment_in_2013.jpg)
Naval Sea Systems Command, the city of Dallas and the Dallas Navy League began discussions in 2008 for items from the boat in support of a memorial. These will become available during the actual vessel recycling phase, which is scheduled for 2023 forDallas.[2]Originally, it was planned to decommissionDallas in September 2014.[5] In May 2013, officials with the city of Dallas, Texas, announced a plan to create a maritime museum more than 250 miles (400 km) from the nearest body of water in which a submarine can operate. MayorMike Rawlings and members of a foundation formed to create the new facility revealed one of their goals is to acquire and displayDallas next to a 30,000-square-foot (2,800 m2) museum building.
In 2013, the US Navy announced that the plan to retireDallas had been extended to Fiscal Year 2017 and that instead,USS Norfolk would begin inactivation in early 2015. The US Navy projected to save $10 million in Pre-Inactivation Restricted Availability (PIRA) costs as a result of the change.[6]
A "Dallas Maritime Museum" (DMMF) was announced in 2013 to be located along the banks of theTrinity River, and had planned to contain some components of the original boat, such as her sail. Some initial, enthusiastic but technically unfounded proposals discussed moving the entire, nearly 7,000 ton submarine to the museum. Unhelpfully, albeit a need of the Navy, the boat's on-again, off-again retirement scheduling impacted the project's momentum. Over years the project languished, lost its staffing, supporters, allocated real estate site and quietly shut down. The DMMF website is now for sale.[7][8]
The Dallas Navy League had planned to host the four-dayinactivation ceremony, to take place inGalveston, Texas, on 7 April 2017. The Navy League subsequently reported that this public relations event was canceled by the US Navy, citing "budgetary constraints" while operating under acontinuing resolution. Additionally, costs to the City of Dallas and/or the US Navy from leasing back already-allocated pier space were judged as excessive. The requirement to compensate commercial shipping companies for their already-reserved commercial pier space resulted from the Navy's on-again/off-again planning cycle for the inactivation ceremony, which ultimately was re-canceled.[citation needed]
Dallas received twoMeritorious Unit Commendations, twoNavy Unit Commendations and was awarded theBattle Efficiency E for FY 1986, 1991, 1992, 1993, 1999, 2000 and 2013.[citation needed] Further recognition includes nomination for the 1993Battenberg Cup as the best all-around ship in the fleet and the 1999 Engineering "E" and Medical "M".[citation needed]
This article includes information collected from thepublic domain sourcesDictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships andNaval Vessel Register.