USS Minnesota (SSN-783)

USS Minnesota (SSN-783) is a nuclear powered fast attack submarine, the 10th of the Virginia-class. She is the third United States Navy vessel to bear the name and the second of two named for the state, while the other was named for the Minnesota River.

For other ships with the same name, see USS Minnesota.

USS Minnesota (SSN-783) departs Norfolk in January 2014
USS Minnesota (SSN-783) departs Norfolk in January 2014
History
United States
NameUSS Minnesota
NamesakeThe state of Minnesota
Awarded14 August 2003
BuilderNewport News Shipbuilding
Laid down20 May 2011[1]
Sponsored byEllen Roughead
Christened27 October 2012
Acquired6 June 2013
Commissioned7 September 2013
HomeportJoint Base Pearl Harbor–Hickam
MottoEx Septentrio Virtus ("From the North, power")
Statusin active service
Badge
General characteristics
Class and typeVirginia-class submarine
Displacementapp. 7800 long tons (7925 metric tons) submerged
Length114.9 meters (377 feet)
Beam10.3 meters (34 feet)
Propulsion
  • 1 × S9G PWR nuclear reactor[2] 280,000 shp (210 MW), HEU 93%[3][4]
  • 2 × steam turbines 40,000 shp (30 MW)
  • 1 × single shaft pump-jet propulsor[2]
  • 1 × secondary propulsion motor[2]
Speed25 knots (46 km/h)[5]
RangeEssentially unlimited distance; 33 years
Test depthgreater than 800 feet (240 meters)
Complement134 sailors[5]

Minnesota was laid down on 20 May 2011, and christened on 27 October 2012 in a ceremony attended by many top ranking officials in the U.S. Navy and Congress.[1][6][7]

On 6 June 2013, Huntington Ingalls Industries announced that Minnesota had been delivered to the Navy, nearly 11 months ahead of schedule.[8][9] Minnesota was commissioned on 7 September 2013.

After commissioning, Minnesota remained at the General Dynamics Electric Boat shipyards in Groton, CT for over two years. A broken pipe joint was discovered in the vessel's nuclear reactor. The pipe had been tampered with in order to make the part appear within specifications.[10][11] Although a failure of the pipe would not result in a reactor incident, it would affect the reactor's ability to produce steam used for propulsion.[11] The same issue has been discovered on two other boats in the class. A Navy investigation determined that two other ships had the same issue, and the U.S. Justice Department commenced an investigation of the contractor responsible for the defective parts.[10][11]

On 27 May 2016, Minnesota left the Electric Boat shipyards for her home port, Naval Submarine Base New London in Groton, Connecticut, to prepare for fleet operations.[12]

On 17 March 2022, Minnesota arrived at her new home port, Joint Base Pearl Harbor–Hickam.[13]

  • Minnesota under construction at Newport News, VA.
    Minnesota under construction at Newport News, VA.
  • The crew of USS Minnesota mans the ship during her commissioning at Norfolk Naval Base on 7 September 2013.
    The crew of USS Minnesota mans the ship during her commissioning at Norfolk Naval Base on 7 September 2013.
  • A Sonar Technician stands lookout in the sail aboard Minnesota as the boat transits Port Canaveral, FL.
    A Sonar Technician stands lookout in the sail aboard Minnesota as the boat transits Port Canaveral, FL.
  • Minnesota pulls pierside in Norfolk, VA.
    Minnesota pulls pierside in Norfolk, VA.

References
  1. Naval Sea Systems Command Public Affairs (20 May 2011). "Navy Lays Keel for PCU Minnesota". Navy News Service. Archived from the original on 26 September 2012. Retrieved 20 May 2011.
  2. Ragheb, Magdi (9 September 2011), Tsvetkov, Pavel (ed.), "Nuclear Naval Propulsion", Nuclear Power - Deployment, Operation and Sustainability, ISBN 978-953-307-474-0
  3. "Validation of the Use of Low Enriched Uranium as a Replacement for Highly Enriched Uranium in US Submarine Reactors" (PDF). dspace.mit.edu. June 2015. Retrieved 20 March 2022.
  4. "US study of reactor and fuel types to enable naval reactors to shift from HEU fuel". fissilematerials.org. 10 April 2020. Retrieved 20 March 2022.
  5. "The US Navy – Fact File". Archived from the original on 3 July 2007. Retrieved 5 July 2007.
  6. Frost, Peter, "Newport News Shipyard Will Lay Keel of Submarine Minnesota on Friday", Newport News Daily Press, 20 May 2011.
  7. Brunswick, Mark (26 October 2012). "USS Minnesota will be christened Saturday". Star Tribune. Retrieved 15 September 2017.
  8. Walsh, Paul (6 June 2013). "Navy receives $2 billion attack sub USS Minnesota". Star Tribune. Retrieved 15 September 2017.
  9. "Submarine Minnesota Delivered on Budget and Ahead of Schedule" (Press release). Huntington Ingalls Industries. GlobeNewswire. 6 June 2013.
  10. Larter, David B. (27 March 2016). "Secret weld: How shoddy parts disabled a $2.7 billion submarine". Navy Times. Retrieved 15 September 2017.
  11. Mizokami, Kyle (29 March 2016). "Billion-Dollar Attack Sub Sidelined for Two Years Over Shoddy Work". Popular Mechanics. Retrieved 15 September 2017.
  12. "After more than two years at EB, USS Minnesota transferred to sub base to prepare for fleet operations". 27 May 2016. Retrieved 15 September 2017.
  13. Michael Zingaro (17 March 2022). "USS Minnesota Arrives at Pearl Harbor". Submarine Force Pacific News.
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