Her story in motion
Her service
Fourth of her name.
The USS Cincinnati (SSN-693) was the fourth ship of the United States Navy to be named for the city of Cincinnati, Ohio. She was a Los Angeles-class submarine — the 688 class — nuclear-powered fast attack submarines forming the backbone of the United States submarine fleet.
The Los Angeles class is the most numerous class of nuclear-powered submarines in the world. This class can reach a top speed of over 25 knots and submerge to depths exceeding 650 feet.
Cincinnati’s contract was awarded to Newport News Shipbuilding and Dry Dock Company on February 4, 1971. Her keel was laid down on April 6, 1974, and she was launched on February 19, 1977, sponsored by Mrs. William J. Keating of Cincinnati, Ohio.
With Commander Gilbert V. Wilkes, III in command, the USS Cincinnati was commissioned on June 10, 1978.
High speed on the surface · USS Cincinnati (SSN-693)
Notable moments
The Finnish sailor.
The father of the nuclear Navy.
A rescue at sea, 1979
In August of 1979, the submarine rescued a Finnish sailor who had been in the waters off the coast of Florida for 22 hours after he had gone overboard from a Finnish freighter.
Nixon and Rickover aboard, 1980
In 1980, after patrolling the Mediterranean Sea, the Cincinnati was paid a visit by former U.S. president Richard M. Nixon and Admiral Hyman G. Rickover — the “Father” of the nuclear Navy — so the two men could attend a “familiarization and orientation cruise.”
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On July 29, 1996, USS Cincinnati was decommissioned and stricken from the US Naval Vessel Registry.
End of active service
Homecoming
Dismantled. Remembered.
USS Cincinnati entered the Nuclear Powered Ship and Submarine Recycling Program in 2012 in Bremerton, Washington, at the Puget Sound Naval Shipyard — the only location the United States Navy utilizes to dispose of and recycle decommissioned nuclear vessels.
After dismantling, the ship’s conning tower, the forward planes attached to the sail, the upper rudder, and the emergency diesel engine generator (aka the “Big Red Machine”) were welcomed by a large crowd as they arrived in Cincinnati on August 24, 2013.
They will be repaired, repainted and used to complete the full-size replica of USS Cincinnati at the Memorial.
From the archives
Photos from her service.
Original photography from the launch, service, and homecoming of the namesake submarine of Cincinnati.
Launching · 1977
Mrs. Keating · Christening
Christens the sub
Mayor Springer visits
Returning to port
Cruising on the surface
Nixon and Rickover
“Big Red Machine”