USS Hawai'i To Be Based At Pearl After Commission

Since 01-17-05

Excerpted from NSL UPDATE 01-12-05

Honolulu Advertiser January 7, 2005

By William Cole, Advertiser Military Writer

Pearl Harbor will be home port for the third Virginia-class attack submarine being built for the Navy, a vessel with a sweet name: USS Hawai'i. Rear Adm. John Donnelly, deputy commander of U.S. Pacific Fleet, said the 377-foot nuclear-powered sub, with the capability to operate in shallow waters and drop off Navy SEALs, will be commissioned in 2006. Meanwhile, as the Navy looks to shift the balance of attack submarines from the Atlantic to the Pacific to meet changing needs, two other subs may be based in Hawai'i, Donnelly said.

Such a shift, not yet finalized, would be part of a reconfiguring of the fleet from 40 percent of attack submarines in the Pacific and 60 percent in the Atlantic, to a 50-50 split now, and 60 percent in the Pacific and 40 percent in the Atlantic in the future. Six attack submarines would be moved to the Pacific under that scenario, Donnelly said. The capabilities of the Virginia-class submarines reflect a changing world and new threats of quieter diesel submarines in the Pacific.

The 17 Los Angeles-class attack submarines based out of Pearl Harbor were designed and built for open-water submarine warfare when the former Soviet Union was the main threat, Donnelly said. "We've adapted those platforms to this new environment that we live in today, but the Virginia-class is the next step in the enhancement," Donnelly said. A Virginia-class sub "is an extremely quiet platform and carries a lot of new technologies that we've not used before in our submarines that make it a very capable platform for littoral (coastal) warfare," he said.

The Pentagon is looking for ways to trim the defense budget, and future Virginia-class submarines and other Navy systems are coming under more scrutiny. Nevertheless Hawai'i not only stands to gain submarines, but possibly an aircraft carrier strike group as well. That would pump millions of dollars into Hawai'i's economy. State Rep. K. Mark Takai, D-34th (Pearl City, Newtown, Royal Summit), said yesterday at the annual Hawai'i Military Partnership Conference, hosted by the Chamber of Commerce of Hawai'i, that a resolution will be introduced in the next legislative session supporting the return of a portion of the former Barbers Point to the Navy to show support for the carrier basing plan.

Sen. Dan Inouye, D-Hawai'i, has said the Navy was considering his suggestion to disperse a carrier's 70 to 80 aircraft at Barbers Point, the Marine Corps Base at Kane'ohe Bay, Wheeler Army Airfield and Barking Sands on Kaua'i to minimize jet noise. "We want to support the efforts to bring an aircraft carrier group to Hawai'i," Takai said. "If it means we have to give back (part of the former Barbers Point), we'd like the Navy to consider that because we're willing to work with them."

Gov. Linda Lingle in August took part in a keel-laying ceremony in Rhode Island for USS Hawai'i, the third of the Virginia class. In October, the Navy commissioned the USS Virginia, the lead ship of the new class of submarines, which are configured to dock with the Advanced SEAL Delivery System, a separate sub that rides piggyback. The USS Hawai'i will have greater stealth, modularity for upgrades, can dive to depths greater than 800 feet, and will have a crew of about 130 like its Los Angeles-class predecessor.

Other Virginia-class subs are named Texas, North Carolina and New Mexico. At the Chamber of Commerce meeting, Lt. Gen. John M. Brown III, commander of U.S. Army Pacific at Fort Shafter, said the Army is transforming at Schofield Barracks to include a Stryker Brigade based around eight-wheeled vehicles, and a reconfigured 3rd Brigade with greater combat capability.