USS San Francisco (SSN-711)

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See USS San Francisco for other ships of the same name.

Career	Image:Naval Jack of the United States.svg
Image:Ssn711 8.jpg
Awarded:	1 August 1975
Laid down:	26 May 1977
Launched:	27 October 1979
Commissioned:	24 April 1981
Status:	Template:Ship fate box active in service
Homeport:	Bremerton, WA (As of 19th August 2005)
General Characteristics
Displacement:	5759 tons light, 6145 tons full, 386 tons dead
Length:	110.3 meters (362 feet)
Beam:	10 meters (33 feet)
Draft:	9.7 meters (32 feet)
Propulsion:	one S6G reactor
Complement:	12 Officers, 115 Enlisted
Motto:	Oro en Paz, Fierro en Guerra (Gold in Peace, Iron in War)
Image:711insig.png
Image:USS San Franciso drydock Sm.jpg San Francisco in drydock at Guam, January 2005

USS San Francisco (SSN-711), a Los Angeles-class submarine, is the third ship of the United States Navy to be named for San Francisco, California. The contract to build her was awarded to Newport News Shipbuilding] and Dry Dock Company in Newport News, Virginia on 1 August 1975 and her keel was laid down on 26 May 1977. She was launched on 27 October 1979 sponsored by Mrs Robert Y. Kaufman, and commissioned on 24 April 1981, with Commander J. Allen Marshall in command.

Following an initial shakedown cruise, San Francisco joined Submarine Force, US Pacific Fleet and moved to her homeport at Pearl Harbor. San Francisco completed deployments in 1982, 1985, and 1986 with the U.S. Seventh Fleet and various independent operations in the Pacific in 1986 and 1988 earning the Battle Efficiency "E" for Submarine Squadron Seven in 1985 and 1988.

San Francisco entered a Depot Modernization Period at Pearl Harbor from 1989 to 1990 and then went on to conduct deployments to the Western Pacific in 1992 and 1994. The submarine was awarded the 1994 Commander Submarine Squadron Seven "T" for excellence in tactical operations and a Meritorious Unit Commendation for the 1994 Western Pacific deployment.

On 18 December 2002 San Francisco arrived at her new homeport at Apra Harbor, Guam.

1 Grounding
2 References
3 See also
4 External links

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Grounding

On 8 January 2005 at about 0200 GMT, San Francisco ran aground on an uncharted undersea mountain about 560 kilometers (350 statute miles) south of Guam while operating at about 35 knots and more than 400 feet deep. Twenty-three crewmen were injured, and Machinist's Mate Second Class Joseph Allen Ashley, 24, of Akron, Ohio, died on 9 January from head injuries. Other injuries to the crew included broken bones, lacerations, and a back injury. San Francisco’s forward ballast tanks and sonar dome were severely damaged, but her inner hull was not breached and there is no damage to her nuclear reactor. She surfaced and, accompanied by USCGC Galveston Island (WPB-1349), USNS Stockham (T-AK-3017), and USNS Kiska (T-AE-35), as well as MH-60S Knighthawks and P-3 Orion maritime patrol aircraft, arrived in Guam on 10 January. The Navy immediately stated that there was "absolutely no reason to believe that it struck another submarine or vessel." Later, an examination of the submarine in drydock showed unmistakably that the submarine had indeed struck an undersea mountain which had only vague references on the charts available to San Francisco.

Commander Kevin Mooney, San Francisco’s commanding officer, was reassigned to a shore unit in Guam during the incident investigation. As the investigation concluded, the Navy found that, despite Mooney's otherwise remarkably good record, "several critical navigational and voyage planning procedures" were not being implemented aboard San Francisco, relieved Mooney of command, and issued him a nonjudicial letter of reprimand. (He was not charged with a crime and was not court-martialed). Six crew members were also found guilty at their own nonjudicial punishment hearings ("Captain's Mast") of hazarding a vessel and dereliction of duty, and were reduced in rank and given punitive letters of reprimand. For their actions in the crisis, twenty other officers and men received awards, including letters of commendation, the Navy and Marine Corps Achievement Medal, the Navy and Marine Corps Commendation Medal, and the Meritorious Service Medal.

The seamount that the San Francisco struck did not appear on the charts in use at the time of the accident, but it did appear in a vague fashion (cautionary 'discolored water') on other charts in the San Francisco's possession. The Navy determined that information regarding the mount should have been transferred to the charts in use -- particularly given the relatively uncharted nature of the ocean area that was being transited -- and that the failure to do so represented a breach of proper procedures.

As San Francisco had had her nuclear fuel recently replaced and thus was expected to remain in-service until 2017, the Navy determined that repair of the vessel was in its best interests. San Francisco transited to Puget Sound Naval Shipyard for extensive repairs. Temporary repairs were made in Guam to provide water-tight integrity and forward buoyancy, so that the boat could safely transit to another location. San Francisco steamed to Puget Sound Naval Shipyard in Washington via Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, where she arrived on August 26, 2005 (link).

Given the extensive damage to San Francisco's bow section, including some warping of her pressure hull, the ship's entire forward compartment is expected to be replaced with that of an earlier-retired SSN-688 Class submarine.

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