USS ''Kentucky'' (SSBN-737) is a

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...

ballistic missile submarine A ballistic missile submarine is a submarine capable of deploying submarine-launched ballistic missiles (SLBMs) with nuclear warheads. The United States Navy's hull classification symbols for ballistic missile submarines are SSB and SSBN � ...

which has been in commission since 1991. She is the third U.S. Navy ship to be named for

Kentucky Kentucky ( , ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States and one of the states of the Upper South. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north; West Virginia and Virginia ...

, the 15th

state State may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Literature * ''State Magazine'', a monthly magazine published by the U.S. Department of State * ''The State'' (newspaper), a daily newspaper in Columbia, South Carolina, United States * ''Our S ...

Construction and commissioning

The contract to build ''Kentucky'' was awarded to the

Electric Boat An electric boat is a powered watercraft driven by electric motors, which are powered by either on-board battery packs, solar panels or generators. While a significant majority of water vessels are powered by diesel engines, with sail power ...

Division of

General Dynamics General Dynamics Corporation (GD) is an American publicly traded, aerospace and defense corporation headquartered in Reston, Virginia. As of 2020, it was the fifth-largest defense contractor in the world by arms sales, and 5th largest in the Uni ...

Corporation in Groton,

Connecticut Connecticut () is the southernmost state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York (state), New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the ...

, on 13 August 1985 and her

keel The keel is the bottom-most longitudinal structural element on a vessel. On some sailboats, it may have a hydrodynamic and counterbalancing purpose, as well. As the laying down of the keel is the initial step in the construction of a ship, in Br ...

was laid down there on 18 December 1987. She was launched on 11 August 1990, sponsored by Carolyn Pennebaker Hopkins, who used a custom blend of Kentucky bourbon whiskey, mixed for the occasion, rather than the traditional bottle of

champagne Champagne (, ) is a sparkling wine originated and produced in the Champagne wine region of France under the rules of the appellation, that demand specific vineyard practices, sourcing of grapes exclusively from designated places within it, ...

to christen ''Kentucky''. She was commissioned on 13 July 1991, with

Captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...

Michael G. Riegel commanding the Blue Crew and Captain Joseph Henry commanding the Gold Crew.

Service history

151107-N-ZZ999-001 - SLBM being launched from USS Kentucky

On 19 March 1998 south of

Long Island, New York Long Island is a densely populated island in the southeastern region of the U.S. state of New York, part of the New York metropolitan area. With over 8 million people, Long Island is the most populous island in the United States and the 18t ...

, ''Kentucky'' collided with the

attack submarine An attack submarine or hunter-killer submarine is a submarine specifically designed for the purpose of attacking and sinking other submarines, surface combatants and merchant vessels. In the Soviet and Russian navies they were and are called ...

while the two

submarines A submarine (or sub) is a watercraft capable of independent operation underwater. It differs from a submersible, which has more limited underwater capability. The term is also sometimes used historically or colloquially to refer to remotely op ...

were conducting a joint training drill prior to deployment. One of ''Kentucky''s stern planes was slightly damaged; ''San Juan''s forward ballast tank was breached, but ''San Juan'' was able to surface and return to port. No personnel suffered any injuries. ''Kentucky'' returned to patrol the next day. In both 2001 and 2002, ''Kentucky''s Gold Crew won first place in the United States Atlantic Fleet in the Captain Edward F. Ney Memorial Award Submarine Afloat Galley competition for outstanding food service. In 2005 both the Blue and Gold Crews of ''Kentucky'' were appointed

Kentucky Colonel Kentucky Colonel is the highest title of honor bestowed by the Commonwealth of Kentucky, and is the most well-known of a number of honorary colonelcies conferred by United States governors. A Kentucky Colonel Commission (the certificate) i ...

s by Kentucky

Governor A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...

Ernie Fletcher Ernest Lee Fletcher (born November 12, 1952) is an American physician and politician. In 1998, he was elected to the first of three consecutive terms in the United States House of Representatives; he resigned in 2003 after being elected the 6 ...

. ''Kentucky'' was awarded the

Battle Efficiency Award The Battle Effectiveness Award (formerly the Battle Efficiency Award, commonly known as the Battle "E"), is awarded annually to the small number of United States Navy ships, submarines, aviation, and other units that win their battle effectiveness c ...

(Battle "E") for Submarine Squadron 17 for 2006 and 2009. ''Kentucky''s Gold Crew was awarded a Captain Edward F. Ney Memorial Award Honorable Mention for food service in 2007. ''Kentucky''s Blue and Gold Crews were awarded the Omaha Trophy for service as the best ballistic missile submarine in 2009. On 12 October 2011, ''Kentucky'' had only her periscope above water, when she turned onto a new course that was blocked by the Totem Ocean ship ''Midnight Sun.'' The submarine came into close contact of about 800 meters with the freighter near

British Columbia British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmost province of Canada, situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. It has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that include rocky coastlines, sandy beaches, for ...

in the

Strait of Juan de Fuca The Strait of Juan de Fuca (officially named Juan de Fuca Strait in Canada) is a body of water about long that is the Salish Sea's outlet to the Pacific Ocean. The international boundary between Canada and the United States runs down the centre ...

. The ship has been featured in both the

History Channel History (formerly The History Channel from January 1, 1995 to February 15, 2008, stylized as HISTORY) is an American pay television network and flagship channel owned by A&E Networks, a joint venture between Hearst Communications and the Disney ...

's ''

Modern Marvels ''Modern Marvels'' is an American worldwide television series that formerly aired on the History Channel and is currently shown on Story Television. The program focuses on how technologies affect and are used in modern society. It is History's ...

'' "Mega Meals" episode in 2010 and in the

Smithsonian Channel The Smithsonian Channel is an American pay television channel owned by Paramount Global through its media networks division under MTV Entertainment Group. It offers video content inspired by the Smithsonian Institution's museums, research facili ...

's ''

Mighty Ships ''Mighty Ships'' is a documentary television program produced by Exploration Production Inc. in Canada and aired on Discovery Channel Canada and also broadcast around the world. Each episode of the series follows a particular sea-going vessel ...

'' in 2011. In January 2012 USS ''Kentucky'' entered her Engineering Refueling Overhaul (ERO) at

Puget Sound Naval Shipyard Puget Sound Naval Shipyard, officially Puget Sound Naval Shipyard and Intermediate Maintenance Facility (PSNS & IMF), is a United States Navy shipyard covering 179 acres (0.7 km2) on Puget Sound at Bremerton, Washington in uninterrupted ...

. On 7 November 2015, an unarmed missile launched from ''Kentucky'' during a test caused buzz on social media as it was mistaken for a

UFO An unidentified flying object (UFO), more recently renamed by US officials as a UAP (unidentified aerial phenomenon), is any perceived aerial phenomenon that cannot be immediately identified or explained. On investigation, most UFOs are ide ...

meteor A meteoroid () is a small rocky or metallic body in outer space. Meteoroids are defined as objects significantly smaller than asteroids, ranging in size from grains to objects up to a meter wide. Objects smaller than this are classified as mi ...

. The launch was also widely reported by the Southern California broadcast media. On 13 March 2016, following completion of her ERO, ''Kentucky'' deployed for the boat's first strategic deterrent mission since 2011.

References

* * *"Welcome Aboard" pamphlet provided to USS ''Kentucky'' tour visitors.

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Kentucky (Ssbn-737) Ships built in Groton, Connecticut Ohio-class submarines Cold War submarines of the United States Nuclear submarines of the United States Navy United States submarine accidents Maritime incidents in 1998 1990 ships Submarines of the United States