USS Illinois (SSN-786)

For other ships with the same name, see USS Illinois.

USS Illinois (SSN-786) is a Virginia-class nuclear-powered attack submarine in the United States Navy. Named for the State of Illinois, she is the third vessel with the name, the previous two being battleships BB-7 and BB-65, which was never completed. She was built by the Electric Boat division of General Dynamics, the third of their Block III variants which feature a revised bow and technology from the converted sub-class of Ohio guided missile submarines (SSGN).^[10] The contract for the build was awarded on 22 December 2008 to Huntington Ingalls Industries in partnership with Electric Boat, and construction commenced with the keel laying ceremony on 2 June 2014, at their yard in Groton, Connecticut. First Lady Michelle Obama served as the ship's sponsor,^[11] and christened the boat on 10 October 2015.^[3] Illinois was launched on 8 August 2015^[1] and completed sea trials on 2 August 2016.^[12] She was delivered to the Navy on 27 August 2016 and commissioned in a ceremony at Naval Submarine Base New London on 29 October 2016.^[4][5][13] Then-First Lady Michelle Obama, as the sponsor, attended the ceremony and is considered to be an honorary member of the crew due to her support of military families and her involvement with the Illinois crew and their families.^[14]

USS Illinois (SSN-786)

Illinois on 27 August 2016
History
United States
Name	USS Illinois
Namesake	State of Illinois
Awarded	22 December 2008[1]
Builder	Electric Boat
Laid down	2 June 2014[1][2]
Launched	8 August 2015[1]
Sponsored by	Michelle Obama[2]
Christened	10 October 2015[3]
Acquired	27 August 2016[4]
Commissioned	29 October 2016[5]
Homeport	Pearl Harbor, Hawaii[1]
Motto	Nemo Magis Fortiter ("None more brave")
Status	Active service
Badge
General characteristics
Class and type	Virginia-class submarine
Displacement	7,800 tons light 7,800 tons full
Length	114.9 meters (377 feet)
Beam	10.3 meters (34 feet)
Draft	9.8 meters (32 feet)
Propulsion	1 × S9G PWR nuclear reactor[6] 280,000 shp (210 MW), HEU 93%[7][8] 2 × steam turbines 40,000 shp (30 MW) 1 × single shaft pump-jet propulsor[6] 1 × secondary propulsion motor[6]
Speed	25 knots (46 km/h)[9]
Range	Essentially unlimited distance; 33 years
Complement	134 officers and sailors[9]

History

Illinois completed a change of home port from Naval Submarine Base New London to Naval Base Pearl Harbor on 22 November 2017,^[15] where she is assigned to Submarine Squadron One.^[16]

Ship's crest

The official ship's crest was designed by Christopher Durdle of Roseville, IL and accepted by the Navy at an unveiling ceremony at the Union League Club of Chicago on 2 April 2015. First Lady Michelle Obama congratulated the contest finalists and crew via video at the ceremony.^[17][18]

References

1. "Illinois (SSN 786)". Naval Vessel Register. Retrieved 29 August 2016.
2. McDermott, Jennifer (2 June 2013). "First lady helps lay keel for new submarine". Navy Times. Associated Press.^{[permanent dead link]}
3. "Navy sub 'Illinois' christened by Michelle Obama". Chicago Tribune. 10 October 2015. Retrieved 29 August 2016.
4. LaGrone, Sam (29 August 2016). "Attack Boat Illinois Delivers Early to Navy". USNI News. Retrieved 29 August 2016.
5. "USS Illinois Joins the Fleet" (Press release). United States Navy. 29 October 2016. Retrieved 29 October 2016.
6. Ragheb, Magdi (9 September 2011), Tsvetkov, Pavel (ed.), "Nuclear Naval Propulsion", Nuclear Power - Deployment, Operation and Sustainability, ISBN 978-953-307-474-0
7. "Validation of the Use of Low Enriched Uranium as a Replacement for Highly Enriched Uranium in US Submarine Reactors" (PDF). dspace.mit.edu. June 2015. Retrieved 20 March 2022.
8. "US study of reactor and fuel types to enable naval reactors to shift from HEU fuel". fissilematerials.org. 10 April 2020. Retrieved 20 March 2022.
9. "The US Navy – Fact File". United States Navy. 19 May 2007. Archived from the original on 3 July 2007. Retrieved 8 November 2022.
10. "Virginia Block III: The Revised Bow". Defense Industry Daily. 21 December 2008.
11. "Remarks by the First Lady at the Keel Laying Ceremony for the PCU ILLINOIS". whitehouse.gov (Press release). The White House : Office of the First Lady. 2 June 2014. Retrieved 13 June 2014 – via National Archives.
12. "USS Illinois successfully completes alpha sea trials".
13. "Navy to Commission Submarine Illinois" (Press release). United States Navy. 28 October 2016. Retrieved 28 October 2016.
14. Michelle Obama: 'Beyond proud' at Navy submarine ceremony, NavyTimes.com, 29 October 2016, accessed 31 October 2016
15. "USS Illinois Arrives in Pearl Harbor" (Press release). United States Navy. 26 November 2017. Retrieved 18 February 2018.
16. "Virginia-class submarine Illinois reaches Pearl Harbor homeport for first time". navaltoday.com. 23 November 2017. Retrieved 27 March 2018.
17. "Students Compete to Design USS Illinois Crest". NBC Chicago. 7 November 2014.
18. "Creative crests for crew". Commercial News.

•  This article includes information collected from the Naval Vessel Register, which, as a U.S. government publication, is in the public domain. The entry can be found here.

Further reading

• Christley, Jim. US Nuclear Submarines: The Fast Attack. Oxford: Osprey Pub., 2007. ISBN 1-84603-168-0 OCLC 141383046
• Clancy, Tom, and John Gresham. Submarine: A Guided Tour Inside a Nuclear Warship. New York, N.Y.: Berkley Books, 2002. ISBN 0-425-18300-9 OCLC 48749330
• Gresham, John, and Ian Westwell. Seapower. Edison, NJ.: Chartwell Books, 2004. ISBN 0-7858-1792-1 OCLC 56578494

External links

• Navy Names Five New Submarines
• Virginia Class Attack Submarine - SSN
• Navy Lays Keel for Virginia-Class Submarine Illinois
• First Lady Named Sponsor of New Navy Submarine, USS ILLINOIS
• USS Illinois Commissioning Committee Presentation at the Pritzker Military Museum & Library
• 786 Club – Civilian Support Organization for the Crew of SSN 786