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USS Norfolk Returns Home After Overhaul

Navy NewStand

Story Number: NNS040827-06
Release Date: 8/27/2004 11:03:00 AM

By Journalist Seaman Apprentice Andy Zask, Commander, Submarine Force, U.S. Atlantic Fleet Public Affairs

NORFOLK, Va. (NNS) -- Fast-attack submarine USS Norfolk (SSN 714) returned to its namesake city Aug. 25 after a nearly two-year Engineering Refueling Overhaul (ERO) at Portsmouth Naval Shipyard in Kittery, Maine.

Hundreds of friends and family members crowded the pier in anticipation of the return of their loved ones. Some of the families had been waiting in Norfolk since the start of the ERO.

"It's good to be back in Norfolk," said Norfolk Commanding Officer Capt. David J. Herman. "It's good to be back where the ship started from just two years ago."

"I think my family and friends are happy I'm back in Norfolk, and it's good to be back in an operational submarine," he added.

While Norfolk was returning to her long-missed homeport, some of the crew were arriving in Norfolk for the first time.

"It's great to be here," said Sonar Technician 3rd Class (SS) Michael Labbe. "It's the first time I've ever been here. I went straight from sub school to the yards."

An ERO is the largest maintenance effort in the life of a submarine. "It was a complete overhaul," said Herman. "Almost every single valve got redone, and the biggest part of the overhaul was a complete refueling."

"It extended the life of the ship almost 15 years," he added.

With stealth, endurance and agility, fast-attack submarines like Norfolk are multi-mission capable. They are able to deploy and support Special Forces operations, disrupt and destroy adversaries' military and economic operations at sea, provide early strike from close proximity, and ensure undersea superiority.

Herman said the ERO was a complete success.

"The planned schedule was 24 months - it was completed in 22 months. It was the fastest engineering refueling overhaul that has ever been done, and it was also under budget."

Norfolk is 21 years old and is the 16th Los Angeles-class submarine.