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Virginia-Class Block III Submarine USS John Warner (SSN 785) Commissioned.

4 Aug, 2015 16:40 | 2015

Naval Forces News - USA

Virginia-Class Block III Submarine USS John Warner (SSN 785) Commissioned

The Virginia-class attack submarine USS John Warner (SSN 785) was commissioned during a ceremony attended by more than 2,500 in its future homeport of Naval Station Norfolk, Aug. 1, 2015. Proudly displaying its motto "On a Mission to Defend Freedom," the ship is the 12th Virginia-class attack submarine to join the Navy's operating fleet.

NORFOLK, Va. (Aug. 1, 2015) Sailors man the rails as they bring the ship to life during the commissioning ceremony for the Virginia-class attack submarine USS John Warner (SSN 785) at Naval Station Norfolk. John Warner is the 12th Virginia-class attack submarine to join the fleet and the first Virginia-class attack submarine to be homeported in Norfolk, Va.
Note the Virginia Payload Tube hatch open forward
(U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist Seaman Casey Hopkins/Released)

"Let them know of your presence and your determination to defend freedom," said Warner, as he addressed the audience and the ship's crew. "Defend the sea lanes of the world which are the very arteries of international commerce. Manned by our submarines, our surface ships, and naval aircraft, we are carefully working to keep those sea lanes open - not just for us but for all."

The keynote speaker for the commissioning ceremony was Adm. Jonathan Greenert, Chief of Naval Operations.

"This boat is the latest incarnation of American sea power, and is a strategic asset for this country," said Greenert. "This affords us what we refer to as global access, and it is fundamental to any mission that you ask your military to do. Frankly, we are challenged in space, we are challenged in cyber, we are challenged in the air and we are challenged on the surface. We are not currently challenged in the undersea. We own the undersea domain. We must keep that situation as we go into the future."

HII video

John Warner is the second of eight Block III Virginia-class submarines to be built. The Block III submarines are built with new Virginia Payload Tubes designed to lower costs and increase missile-firing payload possibilities. The first 10 Block I and Block II Virginia-class submarines have 12 individual 21-inch diameter vertical launch tubes able to fire Tomahawk Land Attack Missiles (TLAMS). The Block III submarines are built with two-larger 87-inch diameter tubes able to house six TLAMS each.

As the most modern and sophisticated attack submarine in the world, the submarine can operate in both littoral and deep ocean environments and presents combatant commanders with a broad and unique range of operational capabilities. John Warner is a flexible, multi-mission platform designed to carry out the seven core competencies of the submarine force: anti-submarine warfare; anti-surface warfare; delivery of special operations forces; strike warfare; irregular warfare; intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance; and mine warfare.

The submarine is 377 feet long, has a 34-foot beam, and will be able to dive to depths greater than 800 feet and operate at speeds in excess of 25 knots submerged. It will operate for 33 years without ever refueling.

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Virginia-Class Block III Submarine USS John Warner (SSN 785) Commissioned.