On December 7, 1941, over 2,400 service members and civilians perished in the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. Nineteen U.S. Navy ships were damaged or destroyed, including BB 39, battleship USS Arizona. Lost in the attack, USS Arizona remains where she sunk as a permanent resting place for the 1,177 officers and crewman lost with her.
On December 7, 2022, Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day, Electric Boat marked the keel laying of the newest Arizona, SSN 803, the 30th submarine of the Virginia class and the first U.S. Navy ship to carry the name since BB 39. SSN 803 will be the first Virginia-class submarine equipped with the Virginia Payload Module (VPM). Comprised of four large-diameter, vertical payload tubes in a new hull section inserted into the existing Virginia-class submarine design, the VPM will enable the submarine to deliver a variety of capabilities, including weapons, unmanned undersea vehicles and other undersea payloads.
The ceremony opened with the National Anthem, performed by EB employee Scott Lacaillade, and moving invocations from EB employee John Miller and a pre-recorded message from Ricardo Leonard, Vice President of the Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community. Several special guests were introduced, who were present to observe this milestone in the construction of the submarine Arizona. WWII veterans Bill Stewart, Cliff Sharp, Billy Hall, Wallace Johnson and Tony Faella sat front row, and the last two living survivors of battleship Arizona, Ken Potts and Lou Conter, participated virtually.
World War II veterans Bill Stewart, Cliff Sharp, Billy Hall, Wallace Johnson and Tony Faella made the trip to Quonset Point to witness the keel-laying ceremony of SSN 803 PCU Arizona.
Electric Boat President Kevin Graney recognized Quonset Point employees Kyle Goff, Chris Barnes and Meadow McCarron for their significant contributions to PCU Arizona during the early stages of her construction, as well as EB’s Distinguished Shipbuilders with 40-plus-years of service to Electric Boat. In expressing the significance of SSN 803 Arizona, Graney stated, “The crew who serve on this ship will forever honor the memory of those who served on BB 39. They will do so, fittingly,” he continued, “on a ship uniquely prepared to enhance the reach of America’s warfighters and to preserve our nation’s freedom.”
Electric Boat President Kevin Graney.
Following Graney’s remarks was Jonathan Rucker, Program Executive Officer, Attack Submarines, who introduced the ship sponsor of SSN 803 Arizona, Nikki Stratton. Nikki was named ship sponsor in February 2020 following the passing of her grandfather, Donald Stratton, at the age of 97. Stationed on battleship USS Arizona during the 1941 attack on Pearl Harbor, Donald survived. Badly burned and discharged as a result in 1942, he reenlisted in 1944 and returned to the Pacific Theater to fight in campaigns in New Guinea, the Philippines and the Battle of Okinawa. Donald worked throughout his life to help honor the memory of Pearl Harbor and those who gave their lives in service to their country. His final wish was that no one forget the men of the USS Arizona and Pearl Harbor.
Donald Stratton at USS Arizona Memorial at Pearl Harbor in Honolulu, Hawaii.
When offered the role of ship sponsor, Nikki accepted without hesitation. “I knew in my heart this was a gift from my grandfather, a way to ensure that his dying wish was continuously fulfilled and a way to bridge generations with Pearl Harbor and 81 years—and counting—of history,” she recalled in her remarks. “The future is unknown, constantly shifting and changing with the sands of time, but there is one thing we know beyond a shadow of a doubt,” said Nikki. “That the crew of SSN 803 will stand watch, silently patrolling the ocean’s depths in the most advanced submersible on the planet.”
Ship Sponsor of SSN 803 PCU Arizona, Nikki Stratton.
To conclude the ceremony, Nikki, alongside Quonset Point welder Bob Hobday, co-welded her initials onto the steel plate that will be permanently mounted in a place of honor on the completed vessel.
Ship Sponsor Nikki Stratton and Quonset Point welder Bob Hobday.
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