Sturgeon 637 Class
Nuclear Attack
Submarine
USS SAND LANCE SSN-660
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HISTORICAL RECORDS
 

Mrs. Thomas J. McIntyre
SPONSOR
Senator Thomas J. McIntyre
New Hampshire
 
 
 

SUMMARIZED HISTORY
USS SAND LANCE (SSN 660)


Awarded24October 1963
Keel Laid15January 1965
Launched11November 1969
Placed in Service04January 1971
Initial Builder's Sea Trials12July 1971
Commissioned25September 1971
Delivered01October 1971
Initial Homeport, Charleston01October 1971
Final Homeport, Groton05April 1995
Inactivation Ceremony15January 1998
Final Departure from Homeport04February 1998
Deactivated01April 1998
Decommissioned07August 1998
Stricken Naval Vessel Register07August 1998
Entered Submarine Recycling18June 1999
Completed Submarine Recycling30August 1999


Commander William A. Kennington, U. S. Navy
25  September    1971    Commissioned
September  December1971Shakedown Operations and Weapons Certification
JanuaryDecember1972Local Operations Charleston Area
FebruaryApril1973CNO Special Operations
JuneAugust1973CNO Special Operations
AugustSeptember1973Faslane Naval Base, Scotland
OctoberDecember1973Assigned to the Sixth Fleet (Egypt and Israel Conflict)
 
 
Commander Robert L. Bovey, U. S. Navy
JanuaryFebruary1974Local Operations Charleston ( Sonar Evaluations)
MarchApril1974Operational Weapons Testing (MK48, SUBROC, CAPTOR)
September 74March1975Mediterranean Deployment
FebruaryApril1973CNO Special Operations
AprilDecember1975Local Operations Charleston (Sonar Evaluations)
1976Overhaul, Norfolk Naval Shipyard, Portsmouth, Virginia
 
 
Commander Michael A. Covell, U. S. Navy
1977Technical Evaluation of the AN/BQQ-5 Sonar System
1978A serious flooding event was averted during maintenance when the CO recognized that a flood prevention collar was being installed on the wrong seawater valve.
JanuaryJune1978Mediterranean Deployment
FebruaryApril1979CNO Special Operations
SECNAV Navy Unit Commendation
June1979Panama Canal Transit
June 79January1981Re-Fueling, Puget Sound Naval Shipyard, Bremerton, WA
February1981Panama Canal Transit
 
 
Commander Hugh M. Doherty, U. S. Navy
November 81April1982Mediterranean Deployment
June 83March1984(3) CNO Special Operations
SECNAV Meritorious Unit Commendation
 
 
Commander Orval L. Sweeney, U. S. Navy
MayJuly1987CNO Special Operations
 
 
Commander Hubert D. Hopkins, U. S. Navy
May 881989Overhaul, Portsmouth Naval Shipyard, Kittery, Maine
 
 
Commander Brian J. Rabe, U. S. Navy
JulyDecember1991UNITAS XXXII (32-91)
October1991Navigated Cape Horn
1992Western Atlantic, National Security Objectives
 
 
Commander Randall J. Slack, U. S. Navy
October 93March1994Mediterranean Deployment
1994In 1994 Sand Lance, moored ahead of the Grayling in Charleston, almost sank next to the pier due to flooding in the ERLL when a main seawater valve was being removed for maintenance. The blank plates, which are placed over the hull penetrations by divers, were placed over the wrong main seawater openings. The flooding was stopped, but not before most of the ERLL was flooded.
JanuaryFebruary1995Western Atlantic Special Operations
05April1995Homeport Change, Charleston to Groton - CSS2
 
 
Commander George H. Baker Jr., U. S. Navy
01 March31August1996ICE-X 96, Arctic Circle Patrol
05 June14June1966SORBET Royal 96 Operations, Submarine Rescue Exercise
12July1996Surfaced at the North Pole
SECNAV Letter of Commendation
Realm of the Arctic Circle Certificate
The Domain of the Golden Dragon Certificate
      JulyDecember1997UNITAS XXXVIII (38-97) Deployment
17 July1997Order of the Spanishman Certificate
October1997Navigated Cape Horn, Second Time
30November1997Imperium Neptuni Regis (Shellback) Certificate (Unitas 38-97)
22December1997Returned to Homeport after completing a Final Deployment
Medical "M" Award
15January1998Inactivation Ceremony
04February1998Final Departure from homeport Groton
08February1998Panama Canal Transit
Order of the Ditch Certificate
February1998Final Blow from 660' during approach to Juan de Fuca Canyon,
Pacific Northwest OPAREAS
01April1998Deactivation at Puget Sound Naval Shipyard, Bremerton, WA
01April1998Last Cruise Certificate
01April1998Decommissioning Plank Owners Certificate
07August1998Decommissioned, Stricken from the Naval Vessel Register
18June1999Entered Submarine Recycling Program, Bremerton, WA
30August1999Completed Submarine Recycling Program, Bremerton, WA
 
 
Reflections of a Commanding Officer

Does the USS Sand Lance (SSN 660) history end with the completion of the Submarine Recycling Program? Does Gene Fluckey's USS Barb cease to exist? Does the USS Sand Lance (SS 381) cease to exist? As we entered the shipyard for decommissioning, we preached that every dollar we saved in recycling the Sand Lance was one dollar more we had to spend toward the New Attack Submarine (now known as the Virginia Class SSN). The Decommissioning Crew finished Inactivation both early and under budget. Every day they were looking for ways to safely speed up the process. And through traditional submarine ingenuity, they found them!

Each new generation is the greatest because it stands on the shoulders of the previous. We recycle the old and keep the best parts to grow an entirely new class of American firepower. Though the last physical evidence of the USS Sand Lance (SSN 660) may have slipped away on 30 August 1999, so long as Americans yearn for freedom, she will live on. So long as Americans yearn for freedom, Sand Lance will never cease to exist. That history will always be a part of who we are. It's in our DNA. And I suspect that none of us would want it any other way.
 

Captain George H. Baker Jr., U. S. Navy Retired
Decommissioning Commanding Officer
 
USS SAND LANCE (SSN 660) Awards include:
   Secretary of the Navy Awards:
Navy Unit Commendation
Navy Expeditionary Medal
Meritorious Unit Commendation
Letter of Commendation
 
   Battle Efficiency "E" Awards
   Three Engineering "E" Awards
   Anti-Submarine Warfare "A" Awards
   Communications "C" Award
   Medical "M" Award
 
 
 


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