Naval Base Kitsap is a
U.S. 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 o ...
base located on the
Kitsap Peninsula
The Kitsap Peninsula () lies west of Seattle across Puget Sound, in Washington state in the Pacific Northwest. Hood Canal separates the peninsula from the Olympic Peninsula on its west side. The peninsula, a.k.a. "Kitsap", encompasses all of Kits ...
in
Washington
Washington commonly refers to:
* Washington (state), United States
* Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States
** A metonym for the federal government of the United States
** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered o ...
state, created in 2004 by merging the former
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 ...
with
Naval Submarine Base Bangor
Naval Submarine Base Bangor is a former submarine base of the United States Navy that was merged with Naval Station Bremerton into Naval Base Kitsap in 2004.
History
The Naval Support Base Bangor's naval history began in 1942 when it became a sit ...
. It is the home base for the Navy’s fleet throughout West
Puget Sound
Puget Sound ( ) is a sound of the Pacific Northwest, an inlet of the Pacific Ocean, and part of the Salish Sea. It is located along the northwestern coast of the U.S. state of Washington. It is a complex estuarine system of interconnected ma ...
, provides base operating services, support for both surface ships and
fleet ballistic missile
A submarine-launched ballistic missile (SLBM) is a ballistic missile capable of being launched from submarines. Modern variants usually deliver multiple independently targetable reentry vehicles (MIRVs), each of which carries a nuclear warhead a ...
and other
nuclear submarine
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, ...
s as one of the U.S. Navy's four nuclear shipyards, one of two strategic nuclear weapons facilities, and the only West Coast
dry dock
A dry dock (sometimes drydock or dry-dock) is a narrow basin or vessel that can be flooded to allow a load to be floated in, then drained to allow that load to come to rest on a dry platform. Dry docks are used for the construction, maintenance, ...
capable of handling a
''Nimitz''-class aircraft carrier and the Navy's largest
fuel depot
An oil terminal (also called a tank farm, tankfarm, oil installation or oil depot) is an industrial facility for the storage of oil, petroleum and petrochemical products, and from which these Petroleum product, products are transported to end u ...
.
Naval Base Kitsap is the
third-largest Navy base in the U.S.
It also provides service, programs, and facilities for their hosted combat commands, tenant activities, ships' crews, and civilian employees. It is the largest naval organization in
Navy Region Northwest Navy Region Northwest is one of several United States Navy Regions responsible to Commander, Navy Installations Command for the operation and management of Naval shore installations in Alaska, Washington (state), Washington, Oregon, Idaho, Montana, ...
, and composed of installations at Bremerton, Bangor,
Indian Island,
Manchester
Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The t ...
, and
Keyport, Washington
Keyport is an unincorporated community and census-designated place (CDP) in Kitsap County, Washington, Kitsap County, Washington (state), Washington, United States. The community is located at the eastern terminus of Washington State Route 308, S ...
. It received the 2005 and 2017 Commander in Chief's Award for Installation Excellence - the Best Base in the U.S. Navy.
History
Bangor
Serving 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†...
, this base is one of only two such Trident submarine bases operated by the U.S. Navy: the 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 ...
, used by the
U.S. Atlantic Fleet, is the other. Nearby is Strategic Weapons Facility Pacific (SWFPAC), where submarine-launched ballistic missiles are stored and maintained.
Bremerton
This installation is home to the
. In addition to performing drydock and overhaul services for active naval vessels, it is also home to an inactive ship facility for several decommissioned warships, including aircraft carriers.
Naval Base Kitsap is also home to
Naval Hospital Bremerton
The Naval Hospital Bremerton (NHB) is a United States Navy hospital located on Naval Station Bremerton in Bremerton, Washington. Naval Hospital Bremerton is a fully accredited, community-based acute care
Acute care is a branch of secondary healt ...
.
Protest
In November 2009, five protesters, including 82-year-old priest
William J. Bichsel, S.J., cut through two fences to reach an area near where nuclear warheads are stored in bunkers. The protesters put up banners, sprinkled blood on the ground, scattered sunflower seeds and prayed until they were arrested; all faced prison sentences. Bichsel was released from federal prison on February 9, 2012.
Environment
In 2010, after purchasing the base's first hybrid bus on April 29, 2010, Naval Base Kitsap purchased two additional hybrid buses, with five others to be delivered by the end of July. The diesel-electric vehicles are the Navy's first hybrids and were funded through the
GSA American Recovery and Reinvestment Act
American(s) may refer to:
* American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America"
** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America
** American ancestry, pe ...
(ARRA) Replacement/Exchange Program and are overseen by
NAVFAC, the Navy's non-tactical vehicle program manager.
In March 2020, private water wells of homes surrounding Bangor have been found to be contaminated with
PFAS
Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFASs) are synthetic organofluorine chemical compounds that have multiple fluorine atoms attached to an alkyl chain. An early definition, from 2011, required that they contain at least one perfluoroalkyl mo ...
; one was found to have more than 70 parts per trillion of PFAS.
Units, warships and submarines
(as of November 2010)
*Commander,
Carrier Strike Group Three
Carrier Strike Group 3 (CSG-3 or CARSTRKGRU 3) is a U.S. Navy carrier strike group. Carrier strike groups gain and maintain sea control as well as project naval airpower ashore. The aircraft carrier is the group's current flagship. Other units ...
Bangor
; Guided missile Submarines
*
*
; Ballistic missile Submarines
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
; Fast Attack Submarine
*
Bremerton
; Aircraft Carriers
*
*
; Fast Attack Submarines
*
*
See also
*
United States Navy submarine bases
The United States Navy built permanent and temporary submarine bases around the world to maintain its fleet of submarines and serve the needs of the crews. Submarine bases are military bases that offer good fleet anchorage and are designed to ...
*
World War II United States Merchant Navy
World War II United States Merchant Navy was the largest civilian Navy in the world, which operated during World War II. With the United States fighting a world war in all the world oceans, the demand for cargo and fuel was very high. Cargo and ...
References
External links
NB Official websitePost-Vietnam: Non-Violence at Bangor a multimedia history of protests at the Bangor Military Base from the Pacific Northwest Antiwar and Radical History Project.
Defense Commissary Agency
{{Authority control
Buildings and structures in Kitsap County, Washington
Naval installations in Washington (state)
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 ...
Military installations established in the 2000s
Military Superfund sites
Superfund sites in Washington (state)