USS Olympia (SSN 717) was commissioned 38 years ago today. The last Flight I 688 boat to retire (decom 2.5.2021), she circumnavigated the globe on a world tour in 2019. In 2018 she fired the 1st Harpoon from a submarine in over 20 yrs, celebrating with this epic swim call.
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Fittingly, the now famous swim call photos were taken by Senior Chief Fire Control Technician Vien (Bob) Nguyen. This DoD video "Beyond the Uniform: Submerged", by Matthew Hilborn, gives the story behind the award winning pictures.
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More of the photos taken by Senior Chief Fire Control Technician Vien (Bob) Nguyen on July 31, 2018.
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UGM-84 Harpoon anti-ship missiles were retired in 1997 from US submarines. Here is USS Olympia (SSN-717) launching a Harpoon during
#RIMPAC
, sinking ex-USS Racine (LST-1191) on July 12, 2018.
📽️by PO1 Daniel Hinton
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Also of note, USS Olympia (SSN-717) held O'Kane's cribbage board until passing it to USS Chicago (SSN 721) on October 22, 2019.
Next year Topeka will be the oldest SUBPAC SSN, becoming the 1st 688i to receive Adm. O'Kane's cribbage board.
Held by:
1)USS Kamehameha (SSN 642)
2)USS Parche (SSN 683)
3)USS Los Angeles (SSN 688)
4)USS Bremerton (SSN 698)
5)USS Olympia (SSN 717)
6)USS Chicago (SSN 721)
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@USN_Submariner
Those swim calls are epic. That and being in the top of the sail while on the surface. Only happened once and twice respectively for me, but it cleared my head from the sleep depravation for at least a week thereafter.
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@vinnie_payne
Had 3 swim calls if I remember correctly. NAVET and always volunteered to rig the bridge, so got to go up there quite often.
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@USN_Submariner
I wish I had a good underwater camera when we did our steel beach in 2000. Seeing the same view of a trident only exists in my memory now.
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@KnappJW
Same. I have some of our Panama Canal trip, but low quality and very few. None of the incredible swim call we had off the coast waiting to get into the canal the day before. Basically a whole day parked, swimming, BBQing.
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@USN_Submariner
Such a cool shot. Did one swim call out of 10 boats in the Med on USS Trepang (SSN 674).
#Submarines
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@USN_Submariner
What the hell is going on? Everyone seems to be getting swim call in the Navy lately.
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