USS James Madison (SSBN-627)

USS *James Madison* (SSBN-627)
	USS James Madison (SSBN-627) at sea
History
United States of America
Name:	USS James Madison
Namesake:	James Madison
Ordered:	20 July 1961
Builder:	Newport News Shipbuilding and Drydock Company
Laid down:	5 March 1962
Launched:	15 March 1963
Sponsored by:	Mrs. A.S. "Mike" Monroney
Commissioned:	28 July 1964
Decommissioned:	20 November 1992
Stricken:	20 November 1992
Fate:	Scrapping via Ship-Submarine Recycling Program completed 24 October 1997
General characteristics
Class and type:	James Madison-class submarine fleet ballistic missile submarine (hull design SCB-216 Mod 3)[1]
Displacement:	7,320 long tons (7,440 t) (submerged)[2]; 8,240 long tons (8,370 t) (submerged);
Length:	425 feet (130 m)
Beam:	33 feet (10 m)
Draught:	32 ft (9.8 m)[2]
Installed power:	S5W reactor
Propulsion:	2 × geared steam turbines 15,000 shp (11,000 kW); 1 shaft, one 7-bladed screw;
Speed:	Over 20 knots (37 km/h; 23 mph)
Test depth:	Over 400 ft (120 m)
Complement:	Two crews (Blue and Gold) of 15 officers and 132 enlisted each[2]
Armament:	4 × 21 inches (530 mm) Mark 65[2] torpedo tubes (bow; Mark 48 torpedoes, 16 vertical launch missile tubes amidships, various small arms

USS James Madison (SSBN-627), the lead ship of her class of ballistic missile submarine, was the second ship of the United States Navy to be named for James Madison (1751–1836), the fourth President of the United States (1809–1817).

Construction and commissioning

The contract to build James Madison was awarded to Newport News Shipbuilding and Dry Dock Company in Newport News, Virginia on 20 July 1961 and her keel was laid down there on 5 March 1962. She was launched on 15 March 1963, sponsored by Mrs. A.S. "Mike" Monroney, and commissioned on 28 July 1964 with Commander Joseph L. Skoog, Jr. in command of the Blue Crew and Commander James D. Kearny in command of the Gold Crew. She was launched with sixteen Polaris A-3 ballistic missiles.[2]

Operational history

After post-shakedown repairs and modification in November and December 1964, James Madison departed on her first deterrent patrol on 17 January 1965. By the end of 1966, she had completed her 10th deterrent patrol, serving in the European area.

In November 1974 she was involved in a collision with a Soviet Victor-class submarine. The collision occurred when the James Madison was departing Holy Loch in Argyll, Scotland, to take up station when it collided with a Soviet submarine waiting outside the port to take up trail. Eric Graham, a marine historian from the University of Edinburgh, told BBC Scotland it could have been a diplomatic incident but because it was so deep into the UK home water it was an "embarrassment" that they wanted to keep quiet.[3][4]

During her first major overhaul, like the rest of her class, Madison was retrofitted with Poseidon C-3 missiles and their associated Mark 88 firecontrol system.[2] Poseidon was replaced by Trident C-4 missiles during a comprehensive overhaul that took place at the Newport News (VA) Shipyard in the early 1980s.[2]

Decommissioning and disposal

The inactivation of James Madison at Mare Island Naval Shipyard at Vallejo, California, began on 18 February 1992. She was decommissioned on 20 November 1992 and struck from the Naval Vessel Register the same day, and her inactivation at Mare Island was completed on 8 December 1992. Her scrapping via the Nuclear-Powered Ship and Submarine Recycling Program in Bremerton, Washington, was completed on 24 October 1997.

References

Adcock, Al. (1993), U.S. Ballistic Missile Submarines, Carrolltown, Texas: Squadron Signal, pp. 30, (4 also credits mythical interwar Albacore and Trout classes, however)
Adcock, Al. (1993), U.S. Ballistic Missile Submarines, Carrolltown, Texas: Squadron Signal, p. 30
"CIA memo confirms nuclear sub crash". 25 January 2017 – via www.bbc.com.
Weaver, Matthew (25 January 2017). "Scottish cold war nuclear submarine collision kept secret for 43 years". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 30 April 2017.

This article incorporates text from the public domain Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships. The entry can be found here.
This article includes information collected from the Naval Vessel Register, which, as a U.S. government publication, is in the public domain. The entry can be found here.
NavSource Online: Submarine Photo Archive James Madison (SSBN-627), retrieved 24 September 2011

External links

USS James Madison SSBN-627 Reunion Association, retrieved 24 September 2011

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[Adcock304-1] Adcock, Al. (1993), U.S. Ballistic Missile Submarines, Carrolltown, Texas: Squadron Signal, pp. 30, (4 also credits mythical interwar Albacore and Trout classes, however)

[Adcock30-2] Adcock, Al. (1993), U.S. Ballistic Missile Submarines, Carrolltown, Texas: Squadron Signal, p. 30

[3] "CIA memo confirms nuclear sub crash". 25 January 2017 – via www.bbc.com.

[4] Weaver, Matthew (25 January 2017). "Scottish cold war nuclear submarine collision kept secret for 43 years". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 30 April 2017.