NationStates Jolt Archive

Jimmy Carter, former peanut grower and president will have a new Seawolf nuclear submarine named after him. My question is: With all of the inflation, how will it ever go underwater?


Navy to Commission Attack Submarine Jimmy Carter
Wednesday, Feb. 16, 2005
WASHINGTON - The Navy will commission its newest nuclear-powered attack submarine Jimmy Carter on Saturday, Feb. 19, during an 11 a.m. EST ceremony at Naval Submarine Base New London, Groton, Conn.

President Carter is the only U.S. president to have qualified in submarines. He has distinguished himself by a lifetime of public service, and has long ties to the Navy and the submarine force.

Carter graduated from the U.S. Naval Academy in 1946, served as a commissioned officer aboard submarines, and served as commander-in-chief from 1977 to 1981. Carter's statesmanship, philanthropy and sense of humanity earned him the Nobel Peace Prize in 2002.

Retired Adm. Stansfield Turner, a classmate of the president who served in the Carter administration as the director of the Central Intelligence Agency, will deliver the ceremony's principal address. Rosalynn Carter is the sponsor for the ship named for her husband, with daughter Amy serving as matron of honor. In a time-honored Navy tradition, Rosalynn Carter will give the first order to "man our ship and bring her to life!"

Jimmy Carter is the third and final submarine of the Seawolf class. As the most advanced submarine in the class, Jimmy Carter will have built-in flexibility and an array of new warfighting features that will enable it to prevail in any scenario, against any threat – from beneath Artic ice to shallow water.

Differentiating Jimmy Carter from all other undersea vessels is its multimission platform (MMP), which includes a 100-foot hull extension to enhance payload capability. The MMP will enable Jimmy Carter to accommodate the advanced technology required to develop and test a new generation of weapons, sensors and undersea vehicles for naval special warfare, tactical surveillance and mine-warfare operations.

Capt. Robert D. Kelso, a native of Fayetteville, Tenn., will serve as Jimmy Carter's first commanding officer, leading a crew of approximately 130 officers and sailors. Built by General Dynamics Electric Boat in Groton, Conn., the 12,130-ton Jimmy Carter is 453 feet in length, has a beam of 40 feet, and can operate at speeds exceeding 25 knots when submerged.



I still can't believe they would honor histories greatest monster!

History's greatest Monster?! Ah yes, the dreaded Sea Wolf of ancient times, the beast that this class of submarine is named after. Swallowed men whole, traveled in packs along the Mediterrainian sea floor, rising up to savage merchant ships as they scurried along trade routes. These fell beasts were the terror of all seafaring people, perpetuating the myths of even greater "sea monsters" out in the oceans beyond.

In more modern times the Sea Wolf was emulated by the German U-boats; their "Wolf Packs" also terrorized the Atlantic, in place of the now-extinct Sea Wolf. Historians still speculate as to wether the U-boat ever managed to do as much damage or cause as much fear as their namesake. I personally doubt it, the average Sea Wolf was smaller than the U-boat, but even the smallest of their savage attacks left scars on more than just ships and sailors.

Truly, nature still provides us with our greatest monsters. Why we would name one after a president who was chased by a rabid squirrel is beyond me.

I have honestly never heard anything about a sea wolf before. ever.

Of course, what that article DOESN'T mention is that the sub was actually built by an all-volunteer community group called "Attack Subs for Humanity" whereby people gave of there own time to help some poor, underprivilidged submariners have their own sub which they otherwise would not have been able to afford.


Our understanding is that the captain of the USS San Francisco - which ran aground near Guam last month - has recently put himself on the list hoping that a similar community effort will someday restore him to seafaring duty.


:D

I have honestly never heard anything about a sea wolf before. ever.

Indeed? Surprising. Surely you've heard of Greek fire? It was used as Anti-Ship "napalm" of sorts during the ancient Greek times. Scientists still speculate on what exactly Greek fire was, but one thing they are certain about is that it proved an effective detterant against the marauding Sea Wolves. Sea Wolves would attack a ship that was hit by the Greek fire only to burn themselves and get injured. The widespread use of Greek Fire soon lead to a significant reduction in Sea Wolf attacks as the deadly predators associated ships with pain.

I cannot say for certain when the Sea Wolf went extinct, but I know that the ancient peoples of the world must have hunted them into extinction partly due to their great fear of them. It seems very intimidating that a submarine of considerable stealth and power would be named after them.

Ah, Zepp, I see you've heard of them too. Yes, I find it interesting that the Sub that ran aground near Guam so perfectly emulated a dying Sea Wolf.