USS Parche (SSN-683)

The USS Parche (SSN -683 ) was a nuclear submarine of the United States Navy and was a member of the Sturgeon class. In the late 1970s and a second time ten years later the boat was considerably modified and equipped for special operations.

History

The Parche was commissioned in 1968 and placed the end of 1970 at Ingalls Shipbuilding in Kiel. Launching was in 1973, commissioning in 1974. Until 1976 the boat was in the Atlantic, then in the Pacific Fleet.

1978 Parche for special operations was rebuilt. 1987-1991 it has been modified again significantly in Iceland Mare Naval Shipyard. Here, a 100 feet ( 30 meters) long section was inserted in front of the tower. This bat cave called section of the trunk contained, among other things, a hatch through the floor of the submarine could be exposed by the probes. The Parche was the third in this way for " special tasks " upgraded submarine. The first two were the USS Halibut (SSGN-587) and the USS Seawolf (SSN -575 ). In the 80s and 90s also the USS Richard B. Russell ( SSN -687 ) resulted in " special tasks" to be.

The Parche was rebuilt on the advice of the U.S. Naval Intelligence to tap into an undersea cable in the Barents Sea in the context of the Cold War and bring the information to the United States.

2004 Parche was decommissioned and broken in the Puget Sound Naval Shipyard. For special operations, the USS Jimmy Carter (SSN -23) is used since the Seawolf - class.

Awards

During her 30 years of service, the Parche was awarded a total of nine Presidential Unit Citations, making it still the most decorated unit of the Navy.