A faraway land that still calls me back – Holy Loch and Polaris

I remember the day that the announcement came that Holy Loch was closing. February 1991 was a typical cold Scottish month. I had already completed my initial qualifications as Docking Officer and would be certified in the next docking of a nuclear submarine on March 15th. But before I could even think about the […]

The second shot heard round the world – Polaris A1

By the rude bridge that arched the flood, Their flag to April’s breeze unfurled, Here once the embattled farmers stood, And fired the shot heard round the world. − Emerson, “Concord Hymn” (A poem about the events on April 19, 1775 that are credited with being the first shots of the Revolution that changed […]

The Hero of the Two Worlds (Le Héros des Deux Mondes) USS Lafayette SSBN 616

When the Polaris program was first conceived, the technology to make it all work did not exist. Neither did the submarine platforms that would need to carry the new weapons. In fact, the George Washington was a strange creature that evolved from the world of Fast Attacks that in and of themselves were revolutionary. Gone […]

Ballistic Missile Nuclear Submarines in 1964

Nuclear Submarines at Ten Years This article from ALL HANDS MAGAZINE did a very nice job capturing the development of the Nuclear Submarine Navy during the first ten years. Looking back nearly fifty five years later, it is stunning to see what was accomplished considering the technology they had available at the time. Think about […]

I left my heart… on the San Francisco

Oro en Paz, Fierro en Guerra – The San Francisco Story (Post #711) Over the years, I have heard many submariners say that a boat changed their life. For some, it was because the boat was their qualification boat. The completion of a hard and grueling period in their life when they were required to […]

USS Patrick Henry SSBN 599 – Give Me Liberty or Give Me death!

USS Patrick Henry “I know not what course others may take, but as for me, give me liberty, or give me death.” As a sailor who sailed on a number of submarines and ships, I can assure you there is no sweeter word that “Liberty”. I have to be honest with you and say that […]

USS Alexander Hamilton (SSBN 617) – Castles in the Air

This is the next story in the series about the 41 for Freedom boats. The name Alexander Hamilton has been widely resurrected in the past few years with the wild success of the Broadway show “Hamilton”. But for me, the name will always be synonymous with the second Lafayette Class submarine that bore his name. […]

The First American – Benjamin Franklin and the SSBN 640 Submarine named for him

Ben Franklin was always one of my favorite historical figures as I was growing up. I learned about his exploits as a young man and of course he was a writer among many of his achievements. His ability to learn has always fascinated me and maybe made me a bit jealous. From the time he […]

USS Thomas Jefferson SSBN 618 – Hostility Against Tyranny

This is the third in the 41 for freedom series of Articles on theleansubmariner. Like the first two, it captures the thoughts of the man who was the Father of the Nuclear Navy in his own words from his book about the submarines that were named after American icons. Thomas Jefferson was a very complicated […]

Can the Groundhog see his shadow underwater?

Homesick Once upon a time on a submarine far, far away (USS San Francisco to be exact) a number of us were homesick for the place we had originally called home. In this case, it was Western Pennsylvania. The 711 boat was a hard working boat and once we hit our homeport in Pearl Harbor, […]