Name USS Billfish (SSN-676) Laid down 20 September 1968 Decommissioned 1 July 1999 Construction started 20 September 1968 Length 89 m | Ordered 15 July 1966 Commissioned 12 March 1971 Struck 1 July 1999 Launched 1 May 1970 Test depth 396 m | |
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Builder General Dynamics Electric Boat | ||
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.
Contents
Construction and commissioning
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 with Commander Richard M. Hughes in command.
Service history
Billfish was one of the few submarines fitted to carry Mystic class deep submergence rescue vehicle during the 1980s.
Decommissioning and disposal
Billfish was decommissioned on 1 July 1999 and stricken from the Naval Vessel Register the same day. Her scrapping via the Nuclear-Powered Ship and Submarine Recycling Program at Puget Sound Naval Shipyard in Bremerton, Washington, was completed on 26 April 2000.
