IV
106TH CONGRESS
1ST SESSION
H. RES. 397
Commending the submarine force of the United States Navy on the 100th
anniversary of the force.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
NOVEMBER 18, 1999
Mr. GEJDENSON (for himself, Mr. BATEMAN, Ms. DELAURO, Mr. GOODE, Mr.
GOODLATTE, Mrs. JOHNSON of Connecticut, Mr. LARSON, Mr. MALONEY
of Connecticut, and Mr. SHAYS) submitted the following resolution; which
was referred to the Committee on Armed Services
RESOLUTION
Commending the submarine force of the United States Navy
on the 100th anniversary of the force.
Whereas the submarine force of the United States was found-
ed with the purchase of the U.S.S. HOLLAND on April
11, 1900;
Whereas in overcoming destruction resulting from the attack
of United States forces at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, on De-
cember 7, 1941, and difficulties with defective torpedoes,
the submarine force destroyed 1,314 enemy ships in
World War II (weighing a cumulative 5,300,000 tons),
which accounts for 55 percent of all enemy ships lost in
World War II;
•HRES 397 IH
Whereas 16,000 United States submariners served with cour-
age during World War II, and 7 United States subma-
riners were awarded Congressional Medals of Honor for
their distinguished gallantry in combat above and beyond
the call of duty;
Whereas in achieving an impressive World War II record, the
submarine force suffered the highest casualty rate of any
combatant submarine service of the warring alliances, los-
ing 375 officers and 3,131 enlisted men in 52 sub-
marines;
Whereas from 1948 to 1955, the submarine force, with lead-
ership provided by Admiral Hyman Rickover and others,
developed an industrial base in a new technology, pio-
neered new materials, designed and built a prototype re-
actor, established a training program, and took to sea the
world’s first nuclear-powered submarine, the U.S.S.
NAUTILUS, thus providing America undersea superi-
ority;
Whereas subsequent to the design of the U.S.S. NAUTILUS,
the submarine force continued to develop and put to sea
the world’s most advanced and capable submarines,
which were vital to maintaining our national security dur-
ing the Cold War;
Whereas the United States Navy, with leadership provided by
Admiral Red Raborn, developed the world’s first oper-
ational ballistic missile submarine, which provided an in-
valuable asset to our Nation’s strategic nuclear deterrent
capability, and contributed directly to the eventual con-
clusion of the Cold War; and
Whereas in 1999, the submarine force provides the United
States Navy with the ability to operate around the world,
•HRES 397 IH
independent of outside support, from the open ocean to
the littorals, carrying out multimission taskings on tac-
tical, operational, and strategic levels: Now, therefore, be
it
Resolved, That—
(1) the House of Representatives—
(A) commends the past and present per-
sonnel of the submarine force of the United
States Navy for their technical excellence, ac-
complishments, professionalism, and sacrifices;
and
(B) congratulates those personnel for the
100 years of exemplary service that they have
provided the United States; and
(2) in the next millennium, the submarine force
of the United States Navy should continue to com-
prise an integral part of the Navy, and to carry out
missions that are key to maintaining our great Na-
tion’s freedom and security as the most superior
submarine force in the world.
Æ