'''USS ''Columbia'' (SSN-771)''', is the 21st flight III, or Improved (688i) {{sclass|Los Angeles|submarine|0}} [[attack submarine]],and is the eighth vessel of the [[United States Navy]] to bear that name. Theearlier''Columbia''sweregiventheirnamesfordifferingreasons;SSN-771wasnamedin honor of [[Columbia,SouthCarolina]];[[Columbia,Missouri]];and[[Columbia, Illinois]].<ref name="ns1">{{cite web|url=http://navysite.de/ssn/ssn771.htm|title=USS Columbia (SSN-771)|publisher=navysite.de|access-date=27 February 2022}}</ref>
'''USS ''Columbia'' (SSN-771)''' is the 21st flight III, or Improved (688i) {{sclass|Los Angeles|submarine|0}} [[attack submarine]] of the the [[United States Navy]]. Commissioned in 1995, the submarine is assigned to Submarine Squadron 7 and homeported in [[Joint Base Pearl Harbor–Hickam|Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=About USS Columbia {{!}} USS Columbia {{!}} SSN 771 {{!}} Submarine Squadron 7 {{!}} COMSUBPAC |url=https://www.csp.navy.mil/columbia/About/ |access-date=2022-06-05 |website=www.csp.navy.mil}}</ref>
It is the eighth U.S. warship to bear its name, though the first to be named for three cities: [[Columbia, South Carolina]]; [[Columbia, Missouri]]; and [[Columbia, Illinois]].<ref name="ns1">{{cite web|url=http://navysite.de/ssn/ssn771.htm|title=USS Columbia (SSN-771)|publisher=navysite.de|access-date=27 February 2022}}</ref>
== History ==
== History ==
Revisionasof13:53,5June2022
Los Angeles-class nuclear-powered attack submarine of the US Navy
For other ships with the same name, see USS Columbia.
The contract to build Columbia was awarded to the Electric Boat Division of General Dynamics Corporation in Groton, Connecticut, on 14 December 1988 and her keel was laid down on 21 April 1993.[4] She was the 33rd Los Angeles-class boat built by EB, and was launched on 24 September 1994 with the slide down a 1,300-foot wooden ramp, the last American submarine to do so, giving her the title of "The Last Slider".[4]Columbia was sponsored by Hillary Clinton, and commissioned on 9 October 1995.[4]
From March to May 1999, Columbia operated off the California coast, participating in exercises and making port visits.[5]
In 2011, the sub made a western Pacific deployment, including a port visit at Yokosuka, Japan.[6]
In 2014, Columbia made a western Pacific deployment and returned to its homeport of Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam on 21 November.[7]
In late 2015, Columbia made a six-month patrol in the western Pacific, making port visits at Yokosuka[9] and Sasebo, Japan; and Guam; and returning to Pearl on 4 May 2016.[10]
In 2018, the sub made another WestPac deployment, stopping at Yokosuka in May.[11]
From October 2018 until 16 July 2020, the submarine underwent a mid-life overhaul at Pearl Harbor Naval Shipyard and Intermediate Maintenance Facility.[12]
In September 2021, the sub participated in the 62nd annual UNITAS exercise off South America.[13]
In 2016, Navy officials announced that the lead ship of the planned Columbia classofballistic missile submarines, would also be named Columbia (SSBN-826), after the District of Columbia. The name was officially announced on 25 July 2016 by U.S. Secretary of the Navy Ray Mabus.[18] The vessel is expected to enter service in 2031,[citation needed] at which point the attack sub Columbia would be 37 years old. As of 2022, 36 Los Angeles-class boats have been retired, and only three were in service longer than 37 years. On June 3, 2022, the Navy announced that the new sub would be named USS District of Columbia.[19]