PRIDE RUNS DEEP

ah Oh outward appearances to the contrary this is a ship leaving home port there's no peer a no brass bands mark the occasion but to these men and their loved ones the somber reality of goodbye has not diminished the men are navy submarine errs on their way to holy Loch Scotland to begin a three-month cycle of work and isolation quite unlike any other Navy experience these special sailors and their fleet ballistic missile submarine have a mission that is vital to the nation's aim of deterring enemy attack well as we're on the flight heading to holy Loch looking back at leaving our families it is a sad experience with my 18th time and leaving my family gets harder for me and I think it that it gets hard for my family so I just got shore duty we've had two kids while we're on shore duty and I feel that they they're going to miss me it's quite considerably another hand I'm looking forward to the refit and the patrol it's a real challenge each one is different no I don't look forward to refit the concept of twin Cruz allows each ballistic missile submarine to conduct its silent patrols about seventy percent of the time while each of its crews is deployed only half the time and by operating from advanced sites like holy Loch in the Atlantic and Guam in the Pacific the submarines can be on station with a minimum of transit time while the Blue Crew arrives at the Navy site in holy Loch and moves into temporary quarters their submarine is returning from patrol manned by their counterparts in the gold as soon as the submarine ties up alongside the tender blue and gold crews begin an intense three days of turning over the ship and its responsibilities 8642 men hours for this refit we do expect more jobs we have total hundred eighty eight job so far every system on board is checked out for proper operation so the oncoming crew knows exactly what work will have to be done to make the ship ready for another patrol early on the fourth day of turnover the crews exchange command in a brief ceremony Elmer Katara pointed out some communities nasty very well with another patrol behind them the off going crew eagerly heads for home and waiting loved ones for the oncoming crew the task of refit now begins for three weeks they will work round the clock with the men of the tender to make sure the sub and her equipment are ready for the two months and more of submerged patrol the shops of the tender can fix or replace nearly any component on board from periscopes to Poseidon missile you of course more than weapons must be brought aboard there are the needs of the hundred and thirty-five officers and men for the entire patrol including provisions for more than 25,000 meals after a demanding month of preparation the submarine slips away from the tender and heads to see few of the men know where this Patrol will take them but all are keenly aware that they will be gone for over two months and will remain submerged the entire time they know too that the only reason they go to see is to be ready to launch their missiles should the president ever give the command the silent mobile and elusive fleet ballistic missile submarines are the most survivable element in our nation's strategic forces each one packs more destructive power than all the bombs of World War two truly a strong deterrent to nuclear conflict launch readiness is maintained by going through the procedure so often that to the crew it becomes as natural as brushing teeth or tying shoes but the seriousness of their purpose is apparent in every grill & barrel stations missile 4w SRT spit up all missile man battle stations Nestle for Debbie SRT spit up all missiles okay we're on course to 200 head one-third no sonar contacts no evolutions in progress ship to r 1 14 10 alive I really need dick in concert and really quartermasters mr. would you live dick makan Thomas miss ones I've deck makan all stop berger picard panting officer commence hovering launcher con pressurize all to select air pressure I've to 116 select the pressurization fly switch to air LCP one I tengo solutions harry moody missile launch pod nav weapons navigates of our control transmission text completed satisfactorily set condition 1sq for wasrt this is the captain this is an exercise set condition 1sq for WS RT this is the executive officer this is an exercise supervisor weapons before channel set both channels one ready channel checking missile one channel one missile 16 channel two offensive weapons the borrower will be normal our order fire order will be a normal fire order Ron weapons weapons system is condition 1sq for WS rtw SRT mode verified weapon system in condition 1sq for WRAT gavin ship is in condition 1sq also take select raining fire weapons you have permission of fire i Ken Crossley weapons Conn you have permission to fire well missin the Father God welcome confirmation of fire he note 1 you know 16 one away this drill will end not with the roar of missile but with the shared hope of a hundred and thirty-five men that their unseen presence will be deterrent enough and the missiles will never have to be fired in retaliation today America's submarine forces number over a hundred and thirty ships the vast majority of them nuclear-powered but a ship no matter how she is crafted is only as strong as the sailors would take her to see where do the men of the submarine force come from and how do these volunteers of divergent backgrounds become dedicated and serious professional gear these men are going out and man are this is graduation day at the Naval Submarine school in Groton Connecticut or in the basic courses the full spectrum of submarine systems is taught and safety is emphasized throughout each man for example learns the technique for underwater escape should his sub ever become disabled all my first week students must maintain good academic standing and demonstrate adaptability to the submarine environment as well the routine is tough and one man in seven will not make it but it is better to select the most qualified here than to do the weeding out later in the fleet training will always be a significant part of a sub sailor's life awesome those who operate and maintain the vital nuclear propulsion system for example receive a full year of demanding classroom and practical engineering training boy I'll stop I'll stop I most submarine is regardless of rank or rating will go to advanced and specialized courses dealing with the complex equipment and tactics the employee 167 point crowd down by the March minute 44 firing point procedures to 1 minute 40 41 67.2 market growth rate ok well matched on our bearings and shoot rudder is right Flo Rida real to a tree zero mobilizer I believe you're heading later any guy 105 anthro I sound the collision alarm emergency walls lean miles training never stops in a realistic environment ashore crews of operational submarines develop teamwork during import or off patrol periods mistakes can be made and corrected here to sharpen performance where it counts most at sea about half the graduates will be assigned to attack submarines the nuclear-powered fast attacks and the few diesel subs that remain in the fleet the fast attacks are swifter and more maneuverable than the larger ballistic missile subs and there is considerable variety in the missions they perform the primary function of the fast attack whether operating alone or in concert with naval air and surface forces is against its own kind the destruction of enemy submarines they're modern torpedoes and missiles are also effective in the traditional role against surface targets they would bear a large measure of the wartime responsibility for keeping our vital sea lanes open while denying their use to an enemy teamwork is essential to the success of every attack mission my life you can watch my battle station ban ban in battle drills like this one that teamwork is honed to a fine edge oxidation of iron asteroid mark 0.33 mark 41 Division I far speed five and a half are contrary collectively path i dissect now there's 313 said running def 857 if they fight behind firing point procedures to 181 make tube one ready in all respects your panel make button to board reading it on his back that's what my one son Steve cause real fuzzy oh my god what what come on and I'll shoot two one fired electrically girl come to 620 prepare to surface deeper insight a ryokan inform the retriever that completes the exercise I think that the challenge aspect of the job is the thing that I like most about the submarine force whether it be maneuvering as an engineer officer watcher as Yasser debt one of the things I liked about being on a fast attack was that they're more often doing a variety of different things operating with carriers operating with other submarines with aircraft doing independent exercises these type of things I think add to the challenge of the job one of the things that was most difficult as a married man on an SSN is the uncertainty of your schedule on the other hand the fest tech submarine is what higher key program it's there's a lot more to do there's a lot more going on in my opinion a lot more interesting and for someone who doesn't mind or would like to work hard and really feel accomplishment for a job fast excellent place to be there are sharp contrasts between attack and missile submarine operations but with the exception of strategic systems technicians officers and men are often assigned from one type to the other a day in the life of any ship is not quite like any other day or any other ship but there are many common elements in what a submariner would call his daily routine you you you you once we get underway and go to stage it becomes an 18 hour day for us because we have six hours that we spend on watch and then we have the next 12 hours off for qualification work studying if you bring any courses we've got a really good boat really good crew we're closing it in terms of morale I would think that food service again like all the jobs one of the most important you have very few things to really look forward to you don't have the Saturday night gate or anything like that so you have the meals actually and you look forward to a meal you look at the menu and see that you've got your favorite pie coming up on friday night or you've got pizza night on thursday night we have parties we have a Coke machine we make pastries and cakes we do all obviously all our own support and in that way the guy can look forward to a good meal and a good time sitting down here talking to his friends so I wouldn't trade it for anything I wouldn't trade any of the friends I've made or the job I do well sometimes during patrol we we receive newsletters from radio we get messages or from our family we get family gram that's for romantic wonder some of the West can really dream up some really fantastic family games so there's more or less just you know just I'm fine all of your miss you type thing that at least we know we familiarize with the words and the names in the fancy Graham that know that is our family notice that they are all right a boat with people constantly just as the crew of a submarine feel that they are a kind of family their wives find companionship and understanding in group experiences such as this submarine Wives Club you may not feel at one patrol you may feel at the next and they may get worse with each Patrol it may get better with each patrol you know it's how do these wives feel about their husbands choice of submarine duty my husband's in the submarine force and although my second separation is my second separation is coming I found the first one a lot more satisfying than depressing I think after why you get used to it but it really is hard for a while beyond the submarine service itself I don't believe they really know how many hours these men put in that they're not able to do the things they'd like to do or that their family would like to do because they're too busy being dedicated i can't say i really enjoyed him being out to sea but i liked him coming home it was like we've been married almost 21 years and even though we've been married all that length of time it was just like we were newlyweds all over again I thought it was just great clearly family separations are among the toughest challenges that submarine is face but once at sea there is scarcely time to dwell on that fairwater went into the under eye even after all the training they've been through each member of the crew must qualify as a submariner a demanding process that takes six to nine months for the men and about 15 months for officers to alarm function associated with the system it takes a great deal of studying to learn the complex systems on board but each member of the crew must know more than just his own responsibilities more experienced shipmates share their knowledge and finally conduct a rigorous examination in which nothing is taken for granted submarine qualification is not quite like anything anywhere else and it shows in the pride of a submariner when he finally earns his dolphins let me say that I know how much these qualification badges mean you're going to be proud of it in the future it's going to be a mark of respect for you especially from those of your shipmates and the other members of the submarine community and I don't need the submarine community but also other people in the Navy that have such a high regard for some readers as professionals Thank You congratulations to you I see in our submarine force a special kind of pride the pride that real professional show and their work and in their ships as warfare technology becomes more complex and demanding the Navy's need for capable and dedicated people grows too in the submarine force just as in the surface and air warfare communities it's our people who respond today and will still be the key element in the Navy of tomorrow while Navy submarine is work and study to stay abreast of developments in their chosen specialties new ships are being built which advanced the frontiers of submarine warfare almost past the point of imagination USS Los Angeles first of a whole new fast attack class has joined the fleet faster and even quieter than her predecessors this new class was designed to face the growing threat of Soviet submarines already the world's largest underwater fleet the largest submarine however is ours the new Trident class nearly the length of two football fields will carry 24 missiles with a range that vastly increases the ocean areas in which it can patrol while USS Ohio first of the Trident is being built test firings of the new trident missile approving the accuracy and dependability of this advanced weapon system it has been another successful patrol for this crew successful because 16 missiles still rest in their tubes mute testimony to the deterrent power of their presence after two months and more of patrol the men are more than ready to turn the ship over to the oncoming crew and leave Scotland with eager anticipation of the flight home naturally I really look I'd really do look forward to seeing my wife again and that's that's all I intend to do in the next 30 days has become reacquainted first thing I'm going to do it on the way home on the way home told my wife go stop to taco bell that's what that's one of the things I miss the most this overall general mostly the weather ins things like that just a little things everyone takes for granted every day me at the airport's exciting always is probably one of the happiest times in the year anyway what's next is getting there seeing the family a little tired but very elated about getting home that's the city in here one nutshell of anxious to get home now I'm just fantastic going home it's wonderful program one have to shave next event all my wife my kid marms that's what I want the future is bright for the Navy submarine force there are the tangible rewards of good training good pay and good food but for most sub marinas the deeper fulfillment is pride in their particular job the camera jury of a close crew and the knowledge that together they perform as a critical element in the defense of our nation and peace in the entire world you