Ethan Allen (Navy hull design SCB 180) was the first submarine designed as a ballistic missile launch platform.[2] (The earlier George Washington class were converted attack submarines.) She was constructed from HY80 steel (high yield, 80,000psi (550,000kPa)yield strength),[2] and was fitted with the Mark 2 Mod 3 Ships Inertial Navigation System (SINS).[2] At launch, she was outfitted with Polaris A-2 (UGM-27B) submarine-launched ballistic missiles (SLBMs) and Mark 16 Mod 6torpedoes; the torpedo fire control system was the Mark 112 Mod 2.[2] The A-2s would be replaced with Polaris A-3s and but maintained the high pressure air ejection launch gear throughout the rest of her career as a FBM. The fire control system was upgraded to the Mark 80 fire control systems during 1965,[2] while in the 1970s these would be replaced with Polaris A-3Ts.[2] In addition, Ethan Allen was updated with Mark 37 and (later) Mark 48 torpedoes during her operational lifetime.[2]
On 6 May 1962, Ethan Allen, under Captain Lacy and with AdmiralLevering Smith aboard, launched a nuclear-armed Polaris missile that detonated at 11,000 feet (3.4km) over the South Pacific. That test (Frigate Bird), part of Operation Dominic, was the only complete operational test of an American strategic missile. The warhead was said to hit "right in the pickle barrel". USSCarbonero and USSMedregal participated in the test, about 30 miles from the impact point.
To make room for the new Ohio-class ballistic missile submarines within the limitations of SALT II, Ethan Allen's missile tubes (and those of other George Washington and Ethan Allen-class ballistic missile submarines) were disabled, and she was redesignated an attack submarine (hull number SSN-608) on 1 September 1980.
In Tom Clancy's novel The Hunt for Red October (published 1984), the USS Ethan Allen is blown up as a decoy in order to convince the Russian Navy that the Red October has been destroyed. (This plotline doesn't feature in the later film adaptation.)
Notes
↑ Adcock, Al. (1993), U.S. Ballistic Missile Submarines, Carrolltown, Texas: Squadron Signal, pp.17, 4 also credits mythical interwar Albacore and Trout classes
USS Patrick Henry (SSBN-599), named after the American Revolutionary War figure and Founding Father Patrick Henry (1736–1799), was a George Washington class nuclear-powered fleet ballistic missile submarine of the United States Navy. She was later converted into an attack submarine and redesignated SSN-599.
USS George Washington (SSBN-598) was the United States's first operational ballistic missile submarine. She was the lead ship of her class of nuclear ballistic missile submarines, was the third United States Navy ship of the name, in honor of Founding Father George Washington (1732–1799), the first president of the United States, and was the first of that name to be purpose-built as a warship.
41 for Freedom refers to the US Navy Fleet Ballistic Missile (FBM) submarines from the George Washington, Ethan Allen, Lafayette, James Madison, and Benjamin Franklin classes. All of these submarines were commissioned 1959–1967, as the goal was to create a credible, survivable sea-based deterrent as quickly as possible. These submarines were nicknamed "41 for Freedom" once the goal of 41 nuclear-powered ballistic missile submarines (SSBNs) was established in the early 1960s. The 1972 SALT I Treaty limited the number of American submarine-launched ballistic missile tubes to 656, based on the total missile tubes of the forty-one submarines, in line with the treaty's goal of limiting strategic nuclear weapons to the number already existing.
USS Robert E. Lee (SSBN-601), a George Washington-class fleet ballistic missile submarine, was the only ship of the United States Navy to be named for Robert E. Lee (1807–1870), the commanding general of the Confederate forces during the American Civil War.
The Ethan Allen class of fleet ballistic missile submarine was an evolutionary development from the George Washington class. The Ethan Allen, together with the George Washington, Lafayette, James Madison, and Benjamin Franklin classes comprised the "41 for Freedom" that were the Navy's main contribution to the nuclear deterrent force through the late 1980s.
USS Sam Houston (SSBN-609/SSN-609), an Ethan Allen-class submarine, was the second ship of the United States Navy to be named after Sam Houston (1793–1863), president of the Republic of Texas. Sam Houston was the US Navy's seventh ballistic missile submarine.
USS Thomas A. Edison (SSBN-610), an Ethan Allen-class nuclear-powered ballistic missile submarine, was the second ship of the United States Navy to be named for the inventor Thomas Edison (1847–1931).
USS Lafayette (SSBN-616), the lead ship of her class of ballistic missile submarine, was the third ship of the United States Navy to be named to honor Gilbert du Motier, Marquis de Lafayette, a French military hero who fought alongside and significantly aided the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War.
USS John Marshall (SSBN-611) was an Ethan Allen-class submarine, the only ship of the United States Navy to be named for John Marshall (1755–1835), the fourth Chief Justice of the United States. Originally a fleet ballistic missile submarine designated SSBN-611, she later was reclassified as an attack submarine and re-designated SSN-611.
The Lafayette class of submarine was an evolutionary development from the Ethan Allen class of fleet ballistic missile submarine, slightly larger and generally improved. This class, together with the George Washington, Ethan Allen, James Madison, and Benjamin Franklin classes, composed the "41 for Freedom," the Navy's primary contribution to the nuclear deterrent force through the late 1980s. The James Madison and Benjamin Franklin classes are combined with the Lafayettes in some references.
USS Nathan Hale (SSBN-623) was the sixth Lafayette class nuclear-powered fleet ballistic missile submarine produced. She was named for Captain Nathan Hale (1755–1776), a Connecticut schoolteacher who served in the Continental Army and known most famously for giving his life as a spy during the American Revolutionary War.
USS Daniel Webster (SSBN-626), a Lafayette-class ballistic missile submarine (FBM), was the only ship of the United States Navy to be named for Senator Daniel Webster.
USS Andrew Jackson (SSBN-619) was a Lafayette-class nuclear-powered ballistic missile submarine. It was the second ship of the United States Navy to be named for Andrew Jackson (1767–1845), the seventh President of the United States (1829–1837).
USS John Adams (SSBN-620), a Lafayette-class ballistic missile submarine, was the second ship of the United States Navy to be named for Founding Father John Adams (1735–1826), the second President of the United States (1797–1801), and his son John Quincy Adams (1767–1848), the sixth President of the United States (1825–1829). Both names were used with the captains of the Blue and Gold crews alternately using the names John Adams and John Quincy Adams.
USS James Monroe (SSBN-622), a Lafayette-class ballistic missile submarine, was the only ship of the United States Navy to be named for Founding Father and U.S. president James Monroe. She served with the United States Navy from 1963 to 1990.
USS Henry Clay (SSBN-625), a Lafayette class ballistic missile submarine, was the only ship of the United States Navy to be named for Henry Clay (1777–1852), the American statesman and orator.
USS James Madison (SSBN-627), the lead ship of her class of ballistic missile submarine, was the second ship of the United States Navy to be named for Founding Father James Madison (1751–1836), the fourth President of the United States (1809–1817).
USS Daniel Boone (SSBN-629), a James Madison-class ballistic missile submarine, was the only ship of the United States Navy to be named for Daniel Boone (1734–1820), the pioneer and frontiersman.
USNS Observation Island (T-AGM-23) was built as the Mariner-class merchant ship Empire State Mariner for the United States Maritime Commission, launched 15 August 1953, and operated by United States Lines upon delivery on 24 February 1954, making voyages for the Military Sea Transportation Service (MSTS) until going into reserve at Mobile, Alabama on 9 November 1954.
USS Holland was a submarine tender in service with the United States Navy from 1963 to 1996.
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