In March 2007 Alexandria was participating in the joint U.S. Navy/Royal Navy Ice Exercise 2007 (ICEX-2007), conducted in the Arctic Ocean with the Trafalgar-classsubmarineHMS Tireless (S88). The exercise took place on and under a drifting ice floe, about 180 nmi (330 km; 210 mi) off the north coast of Alaska. The two submarines were taking part in joint testing of submarine operability and tactical development in Arctic waters. On 21 March 2007, Tireless experienced an explosion of a self-contained oxygen generation candle, she suffered only superficial damage, but two crew members were killed and one injured.[11]
Kristian Saucier Incident
On 19 August 2016, Navy machinist mate Kristian Saucier, 29, was sentenced by a U.S. District Court judge in Bridgeport, Connecticut, to one year in prison plus six months house arrest for taking and possessing six cell phone photos of Alexandria's classified propulsion system while working in her engine room in 2009. Invoking the so-called "Clinton defense," his attorneys had argued for leniency by citing the FBI's decision not to charge Hillary Clinton for similar crimes of mishandling classified information related to her use of a private email server.[12] On 5 September 2017, having received an other-than-honorable discharge from the Navy, Saucier was released from jail.[13]
Film set
Some scenes for the movie Stargate: Continuum were filmed on board Alexandria. The then-captain of Alexandria, Commander Mike Bernacchi, and members of his crew played themselves. The ship was also used as a filming location for the JAG and NCIS TV series, although she was referred to there as the fictional USS Cathedral City.[14]
Alexandria submerged after surfacing through 2 ft (60 cm) of ice during ICEX-07, a joint U.S. Navy/Royal Navy exercise.
^Pike, John; Sherman, Robert (14 February 2000). "SSN-688 Los Angeles-class". Military Analysis Network - U.S. Navy Ships. Federation of American Scientists. Retrieved 7 December 2008. The 18 SSN-688 class submarines that will be refueled at their mid-life could make good candidates for a service life extension because they could operate for nearly 30 years after the refueling. After these submarines serve for 30 years, they could undergo a 2-year overhaul and serve for one more 10-year operating cycle, for a total service life of 42 years.
^Mount, Mike (11 January 2005). "Officials: U.S. submarine hit undersea mountain". CNN Washington Bureau. CNN International. Retrieved 7 December 2008. The submarine was traveling in excess of 33 knots -- about 35 mph --when its nose hit the undersea formation head-on, officials said.