Navy

Christening of Illinois

October 10, 2015, General Dynamics Electric Boat christened the USS Illinois (SSN-786), the 13th submarine of the U.S. Navy’s Virginia Class. Electric Boat is a wholly owned subsidiary of General Dynamics.

First lady Michelle Obama christens submarine named after her home state of Illinois
First lady Michelle Obama christens submarine named after her home state of Illinois

The Saturday morning christening ceremony took place at Electric Boat’s Groton shipyard with the Secretary of the Navy Ray Mabus as the ceremony’s principal speaker. First Lady Michelle Obama is the ship’s sponsor and she christened the ship by breaking a bottle of Illinois sparkling wine against the submarine’s bow before an audience of approximately 7,500 people.

USS Illinois (SSN-786) will be delivered to the U.S. Navy in 2016.

«We are honored to have the First Lady as our sponsor», said Electric Boat President Jeffrey Geiger. «I’m proud to show her that this submarine is the embodiment of our team, whose innovation, ingenuity and unrelenting work ethic is unmatched».

Virginia-class submarines are among the most effective platforms in the U.S. Navy’s portfolio. These submarines are equipped to wage multi-dimensional warfare around the globe. In addition to anti-submarine, anti-surface ship and counter-mine warfare, Illinois will support surveillance, special operations and covert strike missions.

Electric Boat has established standards of excellence in the design, construction and lifecycle support of U.S. Navy submarines. The company’s primary locations are in Groton, New London, Conn., and Quonset Point, R.I. Its current workforce is approximately 14,000 employees.

Submarine Illinois reaches another milestone, Pressure Hull Complete, on December 16, 2014, when all hull sections are joined to form a single watertight unit
Submarine Illinois reaches another milestone, Pressure Hull Complete, on December 16, 2014, when all hull sections are joined to form a single watertight unit

 

General Characteristics

Builder Electric Boat, Groton, Connecticut
Propulsion One GE PWR S9G nuclear reactor, two turbines, one shaft; 40,000 hp/30 MW
Length 377 feet/114.8 m
Beam 33 feet/10.0584 m
Hull Diameter 34 feet/10.3632 m
Displacement Approximately 7,835 tons/7,925 metric tons submerged
Speed 25+ knots/28+ mph/46.3+ km/h
Diving Depth 800+ feet/244+ m
Crew 132: 15 officers; 117 enlisted
Armament: Tomahawk missiles two 87-inch/2.2-meter Virginia Payload Tubes (VPTs), each capable of launching 6 Tomahawk cruise missiles
Armament: MK-48 ADCAP (Advanced Capability) Mod 7 heavyweight torpedoes 4 × 21-inch/533-mm torpedo tubes
Weapons MK-60 CAPTOR (Encapsulated Torpedo) mines, advanced mobile mines and UUVs (Unmanned Underwater Vehicles)
Electric Boat workers prepare submarine Illinois for rollout on July 24, 2015
Electric Boat workers prepare submarine Illinois for rollout on July 24, 2015

 

Nuclear Submarine Lineup

 

Block I

Ship Yard Christening Commissioned Homeport
SSN-774 Virginia EB 8-16-03 10-23-04 Portsmouth, New Hampshire
SSN-775 Texas NNS 7-31-05 9-9-06 Pearl Harbor, Hawaii
SSN-776 Hawaii EB 6-19-06 5-5-07 Pearl Harbor, Hawaii
SSN-777 North Carolina NNS 4-21-07 5-3-08 Pearl Harbor, Hawaii

EB – Electric Boat, Groton, Connecticut

NNS – Newport News Shipbuilding, Newport News, Virginia

SSN – Attack Submarine, Nuclear-powered

Several Connecticut and Rhode Island officials, Illinois Gov. Bruce Rauner and Navy Secretary Ray Mabus spoke at the ceremony at the Groton shipyard of Electric Boat
Several Connecticut and Rhode Island officials, Illinois Gov. Bruce Rauner and Navy Secretary Ray Mabus spoke at the ceremony at the Groton shipyard of Electric Boat

 

Block II

Ship Yard Christening Commissioned Homeport
SSN-778 New Hampshire EB 6-21-08 10-25-08 Groton, Connecticut
SSN-779 New Mexico NNS 12-13-08 11-21-09 Groton, Connecticut
SSN-780 Missouri EB 12-5-09 7-31-10 Groton, Connecticut
SSN-781 California NNS 11-6-10 10-29-11 Groton, Connecticut
SSN-782 Mississippi EB 12-3-11 6-2-12 Groton, Connecticut
SSN-783 Minnesota NNS 10-27-12 9-7-13 Norfolk, Virginia
Float off begins for submarine Illinois on Aug. 7, 2015
Float off begins for submarine Illinois on Aug. 7, 2015

 

Block III

Ship Yard Christening Commissioned Homeport
SSN-784 North Dakota EB 11-2-13 10-25-14 Groton, Connecticut
SSN-785 John Warner NNS 09-06-14 08-01-15 Norfolk, Virginia
SSN-786 Illinois EB 10-10-15
SSN-787 Washington NNS Under Construction
SSN-788 Colorado EB Under Construction
SSN-789 Indiana NNS Under Construction
SSN-790 South Dakota EB Under Construction
SSN-791 Delaware NNS Under Construction
The emblem of the USS Illinois (SSN-786)
The emblem of the USS Illinois (SSN-786)

 

Block IV

Ship Yard Christening Commissioned Homeport
SSN-792 Vermont EB Under Construction
SSN-793 Oregon NNS Under Construction
SSN-794 Montana
SSN-795 Hyman G. Rickover
SSN-796 New Jersey
SSN-797 Iowa
SSN-798 (Unnamed)
SSN-799 Idaho
SSN-800 (Unnamed)
SSN-801 (Unnamed)
The first description of a U.S. warship christening is that of Constitution, «Old Ironsides», at Boston on October 21, 1797. As the ship slipped into the water, the sponsor, Captain James Sever, broke a bottle of Madeira over the bowsprit
The first description of a U.S. warship christening is that of Constitution, «Old Ironsides», at Boston on October 21, 1797. As the ship slipped into the water, the sponsor, Captain James Sever, broke a bottle of Madeira over the bowsprit

 

Block V

Ship Yard Christening Commissioned Homeport
SSN-802 (Unnamed)
SSN-803 (Unnamed)
SSN-804 (Unnamed)
SSN-805 (Unnamed)

It took her three tries before the determined First Lady Michelle Obama successfully cracked the bottle, causing an immediate eruption of sparkling wine