USS Billfish (SSN-676)

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

USS Billfish (SSN-676), a Sturgeon-class attack submarine, was the second ship of the United States Navy to be named for the billfish, a name used for any fish, such as gar or spearfish, with bill-shaped jaws.

USS Billfish (SSN-676) early in 1971 (picture taken during first sea trial).
History
United States
Name	USS Billfish (SSN-676)
Ordered	15 July 1966
Builder	The Electric Boat Division of General Dynamics Corporation, Groton, Connecticut
Laid down	20 September 1968
Launched	1 May 1970
Commissioned	12 March 1971
Decommissioned	1 July 1999
Stricken	1 July 1999
Motto	Spirit of 76
Fate	Scrapping via Ship and Submarine Recycling Program completed 26 April 2000
Badge
General characteristics
Class & type	Sturgeon-class attack submarine
Displacement	3,978 long tons (4,042 t) light 4,270 long tons (4,339 t) full 292 long tons (297 t) dead
Length	292 ft 3 in (89.08 m)
Beam	31 ft 8 in (9.65 m)
Draft	28 ft 8 in (8.74 m)
Installed power	15,000 shaft horsepower (11.2 megawatts)
Propulsion	One S5W nuclear reactor, two steam turbines, one screw
Speed	15 knots (28 km/h; 17 mph) surfaced 25 knots (46 km/h; 29 mph) submerged
Test depth	1,300 feet (396 meters)
Complement	109 (14 officers, 95 enlisted men)
Armament	4 × 21-inch (533 mm) torpedo tubes

Construction and commissioning

Billfish being launched at Groton, Connecticut, on 1 May 1970.

The contract to build Billfish was awarded to the Electric Boat Division of General Dynamics Corporation in Groton, Connecticut, on 15 July 1966 and her keel was laid down on 20 September 1968. She was launched on 1 May 1970, sponsored by Mrs. Earle G. Wheeler, the wife of Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Earle G. Wheeler (1908–1975), and commissioned on 12 March 1971.

Service history

The Mystic-class deep submergence rescue vehicle DSRV-2 Avalon aboard Billfish.

Upon her commission, she was assigned to Submarine Development Group Two, based in Groton, Connecticut. She was deployed to the Mediterranean, participating in fleet exercises and tactical and sonar development tests. She was awarded the Battle Effectiveness Award for her performance in the Development Group.

In 1973, Billfish trailed the Soviet submarine K-279 in the Barents Sea, correctly identifying a new Soviet submarine radar present on K-279. In 1974, she witnessed a launch of the then newly-developed Soviet R-29 submarine-launched ballistic missile. For these actions, along with participation in several fleet exercises, she was awarded the Meritorous Unit Commendation 1in 1974.

Billfish participated in the 1977 Silver Jubilee Fleet Review.

Billfish was one of the few submarines fitted to carry the Mystic class deep submergence rescue vehicle during the 1980s.

Billfish spent the rest of her service career on regular deployments. Her last patrol, in the Arctic Ocean, ended in November 1997.

Decommissioning and disposal

Billfish pierside.

Billfish was decommissioned on 1 July 1999 and stricken from the Naval Vessel Register the same day. Her scrapping was via the Nuclear-Powered Ship and Submarine Recycling Program at Puget Sound Naval Shipyard in Bremerton, Washington, was completed on 26 April 2000.

References

•  This article incorporates text from the public domain Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships. The entry can be found here.
•  This article incorporates public domain material from Billfish (SSN-676) at the Naval Vessel Register.
• Photo gallery of USS Billfish (SSN-676) at NavSource Naval History

External links

• USS Billfish SSN 676 (Web site created by former USS Billfish (SSN-676) crew member)