Naval Submarine Base Bangor is a former submarine base of the

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 ...

that was merged with

Naval Station Bremerton Naval Station Bremerton is a former station of the United States Navy that was merged with Naval Submarine Base Bangor into Naval Base Kitsap in 2004. Kitsap serves as host command for the Navy's fleet throughout the Pacific Northwest. It is home ...

into

Naval Base Kitsap Naval Base Kitsap is a U.S. Navy base located on the Kitsap Peninsula in Washington state, created in 2004 by merging the former Naval Station Bremerton with Naval Submarine Base Bangor. It is the home base for the Navy’s fleet throughout ...

in 2004.

History

The Naval Support Base Bangor's naval history began in 1942 when it became a site for shipping ammunition to the Pacific Theater of Operations during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

. For an expansion and to establish a permanent naval base, the U.S. Navy purchased 7,676 acres (3100 hectares) of land on the

Hood Canal Hood Canal is a fjord forming the western lobe, and one of the four main basins,magazine was established on June 5, 1944, for its construction, and it began operations in January 1945. Beginning in World War II, and through the

Korean War , date = {{Ubl, 25 June 1950 – 27 July 1953 (''de facto'')({{Age in years, months, weeks and days, month1=6, day1=25, year1=1950, month2=7, day2=27, year2=1953), 25 June 1950 – present (''de jure'')({{Age in years, months, weeks a ...

and the

Vietnam War The Vietnam War (also known by other names) was a conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. It was the second of the Indochina Wars and was officially fought between North Vietnam a ...

, until January 1973, the Bangor Annex continued its service as a U.S. Navy Ammunition Depot responsible for shipping conventional weapons abroad. In 1973, the Navy announced the selection of the Bangor base as the home port for the first squadron of

Trident A trident is a three- pronged spear. It is used for spear fishing and historically as a polearm. The trident is the weapon of Poseidon, or Neptune, the God of the Sea in classical mythology. The trident may occasionally be held by other mari ...

Fleet 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 – ...

s. On February 1, 1977, the Trident Submarine Base was officially activated. Naval Base Kitsap includes the Strategic Weapons Facility Pacific (SWFPAC) which provides maintenance, calibration, missile assembly/test, spare parts, and spare nuclear warhead storage for the

UGM-133 Trident II The UGM-133A Trident II, or Trident D5 is a submarine-launched ballistic missile (SLBM), built by Lockheed Martin Space in Sunnyvale, California, and deployed with the American and British navies. It was first deployed in March 1990, and rema ...

submarine-launched ballistic missiles carried by the

nuclear submarines A nuclear submarine is a submarine powered by a nuclear reactor, but not necessarily nuclear-armed. Nuclear submarines have considerable performance advantages over "conventional" (typically diesel-electric) submarines. Nuclear propulsion, ...

. This Trident submarine base is the sole one for the

U.S. Pacific Fleet The United States Pacific Fleet (USPACFLT) is a theater-level component command of the United States Navy, located in the Pacific Ocean. It provides naval forces to the Indo-Pacific Command. Fleet headquarters is at Joint Base Pearl Harbor� ...

, with the Trident submarine base at

Kings Bay, Georgia Kings Bay Base is a census-designated place (CDP) in Camden County, Georgia, United States; it is home to the Kings Bay Naval Submarine Base. The population was 1,777 at the 2010 census. Geography Kings Bay Base is located in southeastern Camden ...

, for the U.S. Atlantic Fleet being the only other one. The

Marine Corps Security Forces Battalion Bangor The Marine Corps Security Force Battalion Bangor (MSCFBn Bangor) is part of the Marine Corps Security Force Regiment. Its mission is to provide dedicated security support to Strategic Weapons Facility, Pacific (SWFPAC) operations. History MCSFBn ...

has secured the ballistic missile submarines and associated infrastructure since before it was specifically designated a security unit, at company size, in October 1978.

References

{{USWWII Buildings and structures in Kitsap County, Washington Base Bangor Naval installations in Washington (state) Nuclear weapons 1942 establishments in Washington (state)

History

See also

References