USS ''San Juan'' (SSN-751), a , is the third ship of the United States Navy to be named ''San Juan'', though only the second named for San Juan, Puerto Rico. The contract to build her 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 pow ...

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 on 30 November 1982 and her keel was laid down on 9 August 1985. She was launched on 6 December 1986 sponsored by Mrs. Sherrill Hernandez, wife of VADM

Diego E. Hernández Vice Admiral Diego E. Hernandez (March 25, 1934 – July 7, 2017) was a United States Navy officer who was the first Hispanic American to be named Vice Commander, North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD). Early years Hernandez (birth ...

, and commissioned on 6 August 1988. During the early evening of 13 March 2007, units of the USS ''Enterprise'' Carrier Strike Group (CSG) received a series of indications that USS ''San Juan'' (SSN-751), a ''Los Angeles''-class submarine conducting pre-deployment training with the ''Enterprise'' CSG, was in distress. The submarine established communications in the early morning hours of 14 March, and indicated that there were no problems; hence, units were able to stand down from the search and rescue that was already well underway.

History

''San Juan'' was the first of the Flight III or 688i for "improved" design, that received a number of significant improvements to the previous boats in the class. ''San Juan'' and all subsequent boats in her class are quieter and incorporate an advanced AN/BSY-1 sonar suite combat system. Another improvement includes the ability to lay mines from their torpedo tubes. ''San Juan''s sail was also strengthened, enabling the ability to break through ice.

First 688i through-ice surfacing

In 1993 ''San Juan'' conducted the first through-ice surfacing for a 688i-class submarine in the Arctic.

Collision with USS ''Kentucky''

On 19 March 1998 off the coast 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 18th ...

, the submerged ''San Juan'' collided with the surfaced fleet ballistic missile submarine . There were no injuries reported as a result of the collision.

Lost communication

On 13 March 2007, ''San Juan'' was the subject of a

search and rescue Search and rescue (SAR) is the search for and provision of aid to people who are in distress or imminent danger. The general field of search and rescue includes many specialty sub-fields, typically determined by the type of terrain the search ...

mission by the carrier and elements of her Carrier Strike Group off the coast of Florida, when contact with the submarine was lost, and a red flare was spotted in her projected vicinity, suggesting an emergency. Communications were re-established early the next day when ''San Juan'' surfaced, and no problems were indicated.

Visit to South Africa

On 4 November 2009 ''San Juan'' arrived at Simon's Town, South Africa. The ship engaged in at-sea maneuvers with the

South African Navy The South African Navy (SA Navy) is the naval warfare branch of the South African National Defence Force. The Navy is primarily engaged in maintaining a conventional military deterrent, participating in counter-piracy operations, fishery prot ...

for the first time in U.S. history.

2010 overhaul

''San Juan'' arrived at Portsmouth Naval Shipyard (PNSY), Maine, on 8 April 2010 for an engineered overhaul (EOH); for maintenance and system upgrades. As of 2012 ''San Juan'' was assigned to Submarine Group Two. Submarine Group Two was disestablished in 2014, and ''San Juan'' became part of Submarine Force, U.S. Atlantic Fleet (COMSUBLANT).

Awards

* Battle E – 30 September 1991 * Battle E – 30 September 1992 * Battle E – 30 September 1994 *

Navy Unit Commendation The Navy Unit Commendation (NUC) is a United States Navy unit award that was established by order of the Secretary of the Navy James Forrestal on 18 December 1944. History Navy and U.S. Marine Corps commands may recommend any Navy or Marine Co ...

– 1 July 1994 *

Meritorious Unit Commendation The Meritorious Unit Commendation (MUC; pronounced ''muck'') is a mid-level unit award of the United States Armed Forces. The U.S. Army awards units the Army MUC for exceptionally meritorious conduct in performance of outstanding achievement or s ...

– 1 July 1997 *

– 10 December 1998 * Battle E – 31 December 2002 * Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal – 31 March 2003 *

– 5 October 2005 *

– 22 November 2009 * Battle E – 8 January 2010 *

Battle Effectiveness 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 ...

– 12 January 2017

References

External links

USS San Juan Homepage
* {{DEFAULTSORT:San Juan (SSN-751) Ships built in Groton, Connecticut Los Angeles-class submarines Cold War submarines of the United States Nuclear submarines of the United States Navy United States submarine accidents Maritime incidents in 1998 1986 ships Submarines of the United States