By Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Ronald Gutridg, Commander, Submarine Force, U.S. Pacific Fleet Public Affairs
PEARL HARBOR (NNS) -- Commander, Submarine Force, U.S. Pacific Fleet announced Jan. 6 that USS North Carolina (SSN 777) will be the third Virginia-class submarine homeported at Naval Station Pearl Harbor.
Rear Adm. Douglas McAneny announced that North Carolina will join fellow Virginia-class submarines USS Hawaii (SSN 776) and USS Texas (SSN 775) at Submarine Squadron 1 in summer 2010.
North Carolina's keel was laid May 22, 2004, and the submarine's official commissioning ceremony was held May 3, 2008.
Measuring 377 feet long, weighing 7,800 tons when submerged and with a complement of more than 130 crew members, she is the fifth ship to be named in honor of the Tar Heel State. North Carolina's crew is excited to represent the namesake state both at home and abroad.
The state-of-the-art submarine is capable of supporting a multitude of missions, including anti-submarine warfare, anti-surface warfare, strike, naval special warfare, intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance, irregular warfare and mine warfare.
Recognizing the importance of the Pacific region and the increased threat posed by the proliferation of submarines in the western Pacific, the 2006 Quadrennial Defense Review mandated that 60 percent of the U.S. Navy's submarines be homeported in the Pacific by the end of 2010.
