USS DALLAS - SSN 700
FIRST IN HARM'S WAY
USS DALLAS SSN 700

U.S.S. Dallas (SSN-700)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

History
United States
Name: U.S.S. Dallas
Namesake: The City of Dallas, Texas
Awarded: 31 January 1973
Builder: General Dynamics Corporation
Laid down: 9 October 1976
Launched: 28 April 1979
Commissioned: 18 July 1981
Decommissioned: active. Decommissioning to be held at Puget Sound Naval Shipyard, 2017
Out of service: 22 May 2017
Homeport: Groton, Connecticut
Motto: First in Harm's Way, The Hunt Is On (unofficial)
Status: in active service
General characteristics
Class and type: Los Angeles class submarine
Displacement: 6,900 tons
Length: 110.3 m (361 feet 11 inches)
Beam: 10 m (32 feet 10 inches)
Draft: 9.4 m (30 feet 10 inches)
Propulsion: S6G nuclear reactor
Complement: 127
Armament: 4 - 21 inch (533 mm) torpedo tubes

The U.S.S. Dallas (SSN-700) is a Los Angeles class nuclear powered attack submarine of the United States Navy. She is the Navy's second vessel of that name, and the first to be named after the city of Dallas, Texas, although another two ships were scheduled but never completed. After 36 years of commissioned service, the boat is at its end of life and now stationed at Puget Sound Naval Shipyard for inactivation, decommissioning and eventual recycling.

Service history
The contract to build Dallas was awarded to the Electric Boat Division of General Dynamics Corporation in Groton, Connecticut on 31 October 1973 and her keel was laid down on 9 October 1976. She was launched on 28 April 1979 sponsored by Mrs. William P. Clements, Jr., and commissioned on 18 July 1981, with Captain Donald R. Ferrier in command. Dallas was the first submarine of the Los Angeles class to be originally built with an all digital fire control (tracking and weapon) system and sonar system. After commissioning, Dallas was attached to Submarine Development Squadron 12, New London, Connecticut, where she was involved in research and development projects. Since September 1988, Dallas has been a member of Submarine Squadron 2, New London, Connecticut. During her time with Squadron 2, she completed the first ever Depot Modernization Period and various overseas deployments.

The U.S.S. Dallas completed an Engineered Refueling Overhaul (ERO) at the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard in Kittery, Maine in 1998. The D1G-2 core was replaced with a D2W core. Dallas has had a removable Dry Deck Shelter for over a decade. This large chamber, fitted aft of the sail, has an array of air, water and hydraulic systems that allow Dallas to employ the latest submarine arsenal: the Swimmer Delivery Vehicle, a highly mobile and virtually undetectable means of carrying out special forces missions. Dallas has completed one deployment to the Indian Ocean, four Mediterranean Sea deployments, two Persian Gulf deployments, and seven deployments to the North Atlantic.

On 27 August 1981 Dallas damaged her lower rudder when she ran aground while approaching the Atlantic Underwater Test and Evaluation Center site at Andros Island, Bahamas. The submarine worked herself free after several hours and returned on the surface to New London, Connecticut, for repairs.

Museum and delayed inactivation
In 2013 the U.S. Navy announced that Dallas would be retired in 2014, however this was later extended to Fiscal Year 2017. The Dallas Maritime Museum, to be located along the banks of the Trinity River (Texas), is planned to contain some components of the original boat, such as its sail. Originally, it was planned to decommission Dallas in September 2014. 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 salt water. Mayor Mike Rawlings and members of a foundation formed to create the new facility revealed one of their goals is to acquire and display Dallas next to a 30,000 square foot museum building, however, on 30 May 2014, the U.S. Navy announced that the service life for Dallas had been extended to fiscal year 2017 and that instead U.S.S. Norfolk would begin inactivation in early 2015. The U.S. Navy projected to save $10 million in Pre-Inactivation Restricted Availability (PIRA) costs as a result of the change.

Most recently, the Dallas Navy League had planned to host the 7 - 10 April 2017 inactivation ceremony to take place in Galveston, TX. The Navy League subsequently reported that this public relations event was cancelled by the U.S. Navy, citing “budgetary constraints” while operating under a continuing resolution. Additionally, costs to the City of Dallas and/or the U.S. 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-cancelled. 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 for Dallas.

Awards
Dallas received two Meritorious Unit Commendations, two Navy Unit Commendations and was awarded the Battle Efficiency E for FY 1986, 1991, 1992, 1993, 1999, 2000 and 2013. Further recognition includes nomination for the 1993 Battenberg Cup as the best all around ship in the fleet and the 1999 Engineering “E” and Medical “M”.