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USS Alabama (SSBN 731)

USS ALABAMA is the sixth TRIDENT class nuclear powered Fleet Ballistic Missile Submarine, and the fifth United States ship to bear the name of the state.

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Crew List:

This section contains the names of sailors who served aboard USS ALABAMA. It is no official listing but contains the names of sailors who submitted their information.

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History of USS ALABAMA:

USS ALABAMA grew out of the final decade of the Cold War, when the United States was expanding its fleet of TRIDENT ballistic-missile submarines to maintain a continuous at-sea nuclear deterrent against the Soviet Union. The construction contract was awarded on February 27, 1978, to General Dynamics' Electric Boat yard in Groton, Connecticut, as part of the OHIO-class program that was intended to replace older POLARIS and POSEIDON boats with larger submarines carrying longer-ranged TRIDENT missiles.

The keel of ALABAMA was laid at Electric Boat on October 14, 1980, and the first combined crew began to take shape in July 1983 as officers and enlisted personnel reported for training with the new boat still on the building ways. ALABAMA was christened and launched at Groton on May 19, 1984, with Mrs. Barbara Dickinson, wife of Alabama congressman William L. Dickinson, acting as sponsor. After fitting-out alongside in Groton, the submarine conducted builder's sea trials in early 1985, completing successive runs that the Navy later described as notably efficient. Following these trials, ALABAMA was accepted into Navy service sixty-eight days ahead of the original delivery schedule, reflecting how well the shipyard, crew and program infrastructure had matured by this point in the TRIDENT build.

ALABAMA was formally commissioned on May 25, 1985, at New London, Connecticut, with separate Blue and Gold crews assigned in the typical strategic-submarine arrangement, allowing the boat to spend a maximum proportion of her life at sea. Vice Admiral B. M. Kauderer presided over the ceremony at the Naval Underwater Systems Center, while senior political and naval leaders from Alabama and Washington addressed the assembled crews and guests. Initially equipped with the TRIDENT I C4 ballistic missile, ALABAMA joined Commander, Submarine Force, U.S. Pacific Fleet in early 1986, intended from the outset for Pacific strategic patrols rather than Atlantic operations.

Immediately after commissioning, ALABAMA began an intensive shakedown period. Operating initially off the coast of Florida, the submarine tested propulsion, navigation, combat systems, and crew performance. During this phase, the Blue crew carried out a Demonstration and Shakedown Operation that culminated in the first TRIDENT missile launch for the boat, confirming the reliability of the new ship and its strategic weapons system. Once Blue had completed the DASO profile, the Gold crew took over and repeated much of the shakedown schedule, ensuring that both crews were independently certified. In October 1985, the Blue crew returned ALABAMA to Electric Boat for a post-shakedown availability, during which yard workers and ship's force corrected deficiencies uncovered at sea and completed final configuration work before the submarine's move to the Pacific.

With PSA complete, ALABAMA began her transit to her permanent operating area. In February 1986, she sailed south along the U.S. East Coast and made a public visit to Mobile, Alabama, timed to coincide with local Mardi Gras festivities, providing the namesake state with a rare opportunity to see the new ballistic-missile submarine alongside. There, the Gold crew relieved the Blue crew, and ALABAMA proceeded through the Panama Canal and into the Pacific, continuing on to her new homeport at Submarine Base Bangor in Washington State. By April 1986, both crews had completed the first refit period at Bangor, integrating the boat into the local TRIDENT support infrastructure. In mid-May 1986, the Blue crew took ALABAMA on her first Pacific strategic deterrent patrol, inaugurating a pattern of continuous operations that would define the rest of the submarine's career.

From June through December 1986, ALABAMA conducted four strategic deterrent patrols from Bangor into the Pacific. These patrols took place against the backdrop of an intense but stabilizing phase of the Cold War: the United States and the Soviet Union were negotiating the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty while both continued to modernize their strategic arsenals. Operating mainly in the North Pacific and other designated patrol areas, ALABAMA formed part of the U.S. sea-based second-strike capability that underpinned nuclear deterrence, while returning periodically to Bangor for refits and crew changes.

In 1987 and 1988, the submarine settled into a rhythm of patrol, maintenance and training while also gaining early recognition for crew performance. ALABAMA's food service division earned the Captain Edward F. Ney Memorial Award for best small afloat food service in 1987, finishing third in the same competition in 1988, illustrating the importance the Navy placed on sustaining morale and readiness on long submerged patrols. The boat also received her first Battle Efficiency "E" awards from Submarine Squadron 17 during this period, along with departmental distinctions in engineering, communications, supply, antisubmarine warfare, damage control and seamanship. These awards reflected performance in inspections, tactical evaluations and day-to-day operations throughout the latter part of the 1980s.

Missile testing remained central to ALABAMA's mission as a TRIDENT platform. In May 1988, the Gold crew conducted a highly rated operational test firing, launching two TRIDENT I C4 missiles from the Pacific test range to validate both the ship's systems and the broader strategic weapons chain. On September 1, 1988, ALABAMA moored at Bangor at the end of her ninth patrol. The occasion also marked the 100th strategic deterrent patrol completed by a TRIDENT-armed submarine across the class. The Navy staged a pierside ceremony at Bangor to mark this milestone, with Under Secretary of the Navy H. Lawrence Garrett III leading the official party, underlining how quickly the TRIDENT force had become a central element of U.S. nuclear planning. Later, in August 1989, ALABAMA carried out another operational missile test, this time launching four TRIDENT I C4 missiles, reinforcing confidence in the system at a time when arms reduction negotiations were beginning to cap overall warhead numbers but still relied on survivable sea-based platforms.

As the 1990s began, the global context around ALABAMA's patrols shifted dramatically. The Berlin Wall fell in 1989, the Warsaw Pact dissolved, and the Soviet Union itself collapsed in December 1991. The United States retained its strategic submarine force, but its focus broadened from a single primary adversary to a more diverse set of potential nuclear-armed states. ALABAMA, still based at Bangor, continued a cycle of deterrent patrols interspersed with refits, exercises, and port calls. Navy summaries from the period record routine refit operations at Bangor, post-refit sea trials in Dabob Bay in the Hood Canal region, and patrols in the wider Pacific, with liberty or logistics calls at ports such as Seattle, San Diego, Long Beach and Pearl Harbor. These visits served both operational purposes and public-relations functions in a post-Cold War environment where strategic submarines were more visible at major fleet events.

In February 1991, ALABAMA was selected as the platform for a change-of-command ceremony for the Commander-in-Chief, U.S. Pacific Fleet, held in Pearl Harbor. At the same time the U.S. military was concluding major combat operations in Operation Desert Storm. Hosting a fleet-level ceremony on a nuclear ballistic-missile submarine underscored the continuing relevance of sea-based strategic forces even as attention shifted to conventional wars. During this period, ALABAMA could be seen moored at Pearl Harbor in company with units such as the attack submarine USS SAN FRANCISCO (SSN 711), reflecting how ballistic- and attack-submarine deployments intersected at major Pacific bases.

The early 1990s also saw ALABAMA involved in high-level orientation and logistics exercises that demonstrated the flexibility of the TRIDENT force. In August 1992, the submarine embarked the Commander-in-Chief, United States Strategic Command, together with senior Air Force and Navy officers, for a submerged orientation cruise focused on SSBN operations and the practicalities of strategic deterrent patrols in the post-Cold War environment. Around the same time, a Pacific Fleet command history records ALABAMA conducting a mobile vertical replenishment near Homer, Alaska, using Alaska Air National Guard helicopters to transfer cargo at sea. This exercise, conducted alongside similar events involving sister ships such as USS ALASKA (SSBN 732) and USS HENRY M. JACKSON (SSBN 730), showed how Pacific SSBNs could sustain operations without returning to fixed refit sites, an important consideration as strategic forces explored more dispersed patterns of activity.

While maintaining her patrol schedule, ALABAMA and her crews accumulated further awards. The submarine received repeated departmental awards from Submarine Squadron 17, including communications "C", damage control "DC", engineering "E" and, in 1992, the administration "A" - the first time a TRIDENT submarine had earned that particular recognition. The boat also remained competitive in the Edward F. Ney food-service awards. Pacific Fleet records for 1992 list ALABAMA's Blue crew as second-place finisher among submarines. Beyond shipboard performance, the Gold crew initiated a community program in 1990 known as "Water for Life", working with the nearby town of Silverdale and local agencies to educate schoolchildren on water quality issues and supporting watershed cleanup efforts, an example of how SSBN crews connected their specialized strategic mission with outreach ashore.

By the mid-1990s, as arms control treaties such as START I entered into force but still permitted large numbers of strategic warheads, ALABAMA's consistent performance led to higher-level recognition. For Fiscal Year 1995 the submarine was selected as the U.S. Strategic Command "Omaha Trophy" ballistic-missile unit, an award given annually to the top-performing nuclear asset in each leg of the U.S. strategic triad. This honor was formally presented in March 1996. In January 1996, ALABAMA also received the Battle Efficiency "E" for overall warfighting readiness and the Strategic Operations "S" from Submarine Squadron 17, reflecting superior performance in inspections, strategic certification events and patrol execution during the previous year. These awards came at a time when the TRIDENT force was consolidating under fewer hulls while maintaining a demanding patrol tempo.

Operationally, ALABAMA continued deterrent patrols from Bangor through the late 1990s while taking part in selected fleet exercises. In March 1999, she joined the carrier battle group centered on USS CONSTELLATION (CV 64) and worked alongside the attack submarine USS TOPEKA (SSN 754) in a set of exercises that integrated SSBNs into broader Pacific Fleet training, particularly in areas such as undersea tracking and battle group support. In September, the submarine conducted underway operations for the Defense Advisory Council on Women in the Services, providing senior civilian advisers with direct exposure to life and work aboard a ballistic-missile submarine as the Navy examined opportunities and limitations for integrating women more deeply into sea-going roles. By the end of 1999, ALABAMA had completed 47 strategic deterrent patrols. She then entered a substantial refit that incorporated tactical and survivability upgrades in line with evolving TRIDENT modernization plans.

The turn of the millennium saw ALABAMA cross another internal milestone. In spring 2000, she completed her 50th strategic deterrent patrol, coinciding closely with the fifteenth anniversary of her commissioning on May 25, 2000. During this period, she participated in exercises with the carrier battle group built around USS ABRAHAM LINCOLN (CVN 72), first in February 2000 and again in August, supporting complex scenarios that linked strategic platforms with conventional forces in the Pacific. In April 2000, the submarine hosted a VIP cruise in Dabob Bay near Bangor, embarking the Chief of Defense of Japan and members of his staff for a day of demonstrations designed to illustrate how U.S. SSBN operations contributed to wider regional stability and alliance commitments in the Asia-Pacific. Late that year, ALABAMA was photographed near Point Loma, California, indicating a call at San Diego associated with either these exercises or routine logistics.

Through the early 2000s, ALABAMA continued her established pattern of deterrent patrols from Bangor while the United States adjusted its strategic posture after the September 11, 2001 attacks and entered prolonged conventional conflicts in Afghanistan and Iraq. Sea-based nuclear deterrence remained a background but essential element of national strategy, with OHIO-class SSBNs like ALABAMA providing survivable launch platforms in an era of changing threats that now included concerns about nuclear proliferation in states such as North Korea. Within this context, planning began for a mid-life refueling overhaul and missile-system backfit to extend the submarine's service life and align her armament with the newer TRIDENT II D5 missile that was being standardized across the fleet.

In 2005, ALABAMA entered the Puget Sound Naval Shipyard and Intermediate Maintenance Facility to begin her nuclear-reactor refueling overhaul and conversion from the TRIDENT I C4 to the TRIDENT II D5 missile system. The work package included refueling the S8G reactor, overhauling propulsion and auxiliary systems, updating combat and navigation electronics, and modifying the missile compartment and fire-control arrangements for the larger and more capable D5 missiles. ALABAMA was the last TRIDENT submarine still equipped with the C4 missile to undergo this backfit, marking the final step in standardizing the Pacific SSBN force on the D5 system. The overhaul lasted several years. Official summaries record completion of the refueling and D5 conversion in February 2009, after which ALABAMA returned to Bangor to rejoin the operational SSBN rotation.

Photographs from 2009 and the early 2010s show ALABAMA frequently at Naval Base Kitsap-Bangor, reflecting the alternating pattern of patrol, refit and maintenance as she resumed full operations with the D5 missile. Images place the submarine at Bangor in July 2009, September 2010, January and June 2011, and multiple times in 2012 and 2013, while others show her at sea in Puget Sound and Hood Canal, confirming a steady operational rhythm from her refit completion onward. During these years, ALABAMA, like other Pacific SSBNs, supported a deterrent posture increasingly framed in terms of a "free and open Indo-Pacific", as U.S. strategy began to emphasize the rise of China and the continuing missile and nuclear programs of North Korea alongside traditional Russian capabilities.

Organizationally, ALABAMA remained assigned to the Bangor-based SSBN squadrons. Official Navy listings in the early 2010s show her under Submarine Squadron 17 at Naval Base Kitsap, while specialized summaries of the OHIO-class note a reassignment within the Bangor submarine squadrons around 2014 as the Pacific SSBN and SSGN forces were reshuffled. In any case, ALABAMA continued to operate as one of the eight ballistic-missile submarines homeported at Bangor, rotating between Blue and Gold crews and contributing to a continuous at-sea deterrent presence in the Pacific.

Recognition for crew performance resumed in the mid-2010s. ALABAMA is recorded as having earned additional Battle Efficiency "E" awards in 2016 and 2017, bringing her total number of Battle "E" distinctions to at least three by that time. A 2017 Navy report on a Blue crew change-of-command at Bangor noted that, under the outgoing commanding officer between December 2014 and September 2017, the crew conducted four strategic deterrent patrols - three of them extended - and four refits, while earning the 2017 Battle "E", the 2016 Retention Excellence Award, Red and Green Navigation "N" awards in 2015 and 2016, a 2016 Trident Submarine Outstanding Performance Award, and 2015-2016 Supply Blue "E" awards. These honors illustrate how the submarine maintained high standards not only in strategic readiness but also in personnel management, navigation accuracy and logistics in the demanding SSBN operating regime.

Operational imagery from this same period provides concrete patrol snapshots. On May 14, 2016, ALABAMA was photographed returning to Naval Base Kitsap-Bangor after a routine strategic deterrent patrol, with tugboats assisting as she came alongside. Less than a year later, on April 28, 2017, the Gold crew took ALABAMA back through Hood Canal toward Bangor at the conclusion of another deterrent patrol, images showing the submarine underway on the surface with crew visible on the bridge and the missile compartment fairing. These returns reflect the standard SSBN cycle: extended submerged patrols in designated Pacific patrol areas, followed by transits through Puget Sound and Hood Canal for refit, maintenance and crew turnover at Bangor.

A major service milestone came in 2021. A U.S. Pacific Fleet news release dated October 25, 2021, reported that ALABAMA had recently returned to Naval Base Kitsap-Bangor after completing her 100th strategic deterrent patrol, joining USS ALASKA and USS HENRY M. JACKSON as only the third OHIO-class SSBN to reach that number. The article noted that the 100th patrol was carried out by the Blue crew, which departed Bangor in early May 2021. While underway, the boat also celebrated the 36th anniversary of her commissioning, on May 25, 2021. The same report recorded that this milestone patrol lasted 132 days, making it the fourth-longest strategic deterrent patrol in OHIO-class history, and that ALABAMA hosted more than 480 midshipmen from various training programs while at sea, providing future officers from multiple communities with first-hand exposure to SSBN operations.

Innovation in operating concepts continued in 2022. In the context of experimenting with vertical replenishment and other methods that would allow submarines to accomplish tasks at sea that previously required a port visit, the submarine force highlighted ALABAMA as an example. An August 2022 Navy article on at-sea support for OHIO-class submarines noted that, in May of that year, ALABAMA had conducted an at-sea crew exchange, swapping her Blue and Gold crews while underway rather than in port. This evolution demonstrated the ability to sustain the deterrent posture while reducing vulnerability associated with in-port crew turnovers and reflected a broader push to increase flexibility and resilience in SSBN operations.

As of early 2025 official Navy information lists ALABAMA as an active ballistic-missile submarine assigned to Submarine Squadron 17, homeported at Naval Base Kitsap-Bangor in Washington. Long-range shipbuilding plans published for the OHIO-class indicate that ALABAMA is expected to remain in front-line service into the later 2020s, pending replacement by the COLUMBIA-class SSBNs that are scheduled to begin entering service in that decade.

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