USS Pennsylvania Wins Omaha Trophy, "Best of the Best"
Navy NewsStand
Story Number: NNS050726-01
Release Date: 7/26/2005 11:27:00 AM
By Journalist 1st Class (SW) Michael S. Howlett, Commander, Submarine Group 9 Public Affairs
SILVERDALE, Wash. (NNS) -- Naval Base Kitsap (NBK) Bangor-based fleet ballistic missile submarine USS Pennsylvania (SSBN 735) was recognized as the U.S. Navy’s best Trident submarine July 25 when it was presented the 2004 U.S. Strategic Command (USSTRATCOM) Omaha Trophy.
The annual award is given to three operational units, recognizing their outstanding contributions to USSTRATCOM’s diverse mission of strategic deterrence. The three competitive categories are Intercontinental Ballistic Missile Command, a Submarine Ballistic Missile Command, and the original Strategic Aircraft Command.
Gen. James Cartwright, commander, USSTRATCOM, made the trip from Omaha, Neb., to the NBK Bangor waterfront to publicly acknowledge the efforts of all of the officers and Sailors of Pennsylvania.
“It’s a real privilege for me to be with you today to present the Omaha Trophy to truly deserving military professionals...the best of the best,” said Cartwright. “In today’s world of asymmetric threats, our sea-based ballistic missions remain our nation’s vital insurance policy to deter our adversaries and safeguard our freedoms. In that light, I’m proud to present this award to the crews of USS Pennsylvania. The Omaha Trophy recognizes your excellence.
"Your efforts are often behind the scenes. Yet, our nation benefits from your professional expertise and devotion to duty," he added. "You are truly deserving of the Omaha Trophy. I look forward to our future teamwork and commend you on a job well done."
According to the citation presented by USSTRATCOM, Pennsylvania distinguished herself in 2004 by demonstrating sustained excellence while supporting its primary mission of strategic deterrence over three patrol cycles. The ship achieved 100 percent Strategic Weapons Systems readiness while covering 33 percent more of the strategic commitment than the average Pacific Fleet SSBN.
USSTRATCOM also recognized the ship for displaying superlative engineering readiness during the two most recent Operational Reactor Safeguards Examinations and received evaluations of "Above Average" on both Tactical Readiness Evaluations concluded in 2004. Demonstrating tactical acumen, both crews combined to achieve eight hits out of nine evaluated exercise torpedo firings in very challenging scenarios. In recognition of these accomplishments, the two crews (Blue and Gold) of Pennsylvania combined to receive the Commander, Submarine Squadron 17 Battle Efficiency “E”, Strategic Weapons White “S”, Tactical Operations White “T”, Navigation Red and Green “N”, Communications Green “C”, and Damage Control Red “DC” Awards for 2004.
The trophy was accepted by Cmdr. Dave Knapp, commanding officer of Pennsylvania's Gold crew, who acknowledged the crews’ work to earn the trophy as being “the best of the best.”
The Sailors of the sub said the award is a great recognition for their hard work during the past year.
“My crew and I are really excited. We set winning this trophy as one of our goals, and we reached it," said Yeoman 2nd Class (SS) James Sweeney, of the submarine's Blue crew. "We worked really hard to earn this, and we intend to keep it by keeping up to date and excelling at what we do.”
Among its other accomplishments, the Gold crew of Pennsylvania received the Commander, Submarine Force, U.S. Pacific Fleet retention excellence award for 2004 and flew the gold and silver dolphin flags throughout 2004, signifying that all officer and enlisted crew members were completing submarine warfare qualifications within the time allotted.
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