page_title: USS Sam Rayburn (SSBN-635)
section_title: Deactivation, decommissioning, and disposal
hierarchical_section_title: USS Sam Rayburn (SSBN-635) / Deactivation, decommissioning, and disposal
caption_attribution_description: A port stern view of the nuclear-powered strategic missle submarine USS Sam Rayburn (SSBN-635) being dismantled prior to decommissioning.
context_page_description: USS Sam Rayburn (SSBN-635) was a James Madison-class fleet ballistic missile submarine named for Sam Rayburn, Speaker of the United States House of Representatives. Sam Rayburn was in commission 2 December 1964 to 31 July 1989 carrying the Polaris missile and later the Poseidon missile. Following decommissioning, ex-Sam Rayburn was converted into a moored training ship for use at the Naval Nuclear Prototype Training Unit at Goose Creek, South Carolina.
context_section_description: On 10 June 1985, the U.S. Navy announced plans to dismantle a fleet ballistic missile submarine so as to remain within the SALT II strategic arms limitation treaty ceiling on MIRVed ballistic missiles. Sam Rayburn was selected and was deactivated on 16 September 1985, with missile tubes filled with concrete and tube hatches removed. Her missile compartment was later dismantled and the two halves (bow and stern) of the ship were pulled together and welded in place for use as a training ship.
  Sam Rayburn was decommissioned on 31 July 1989 and reclassified a moored training ship (MTS) with hull number MTS-635. Stricken from the Naval Vessel Register on 31 July 1989, she arrived at the Naval Nuclear Prototype Training Unit at Goose Creek, South Carolina, in August 1989 after achieving initial criticality in her new role on 29 July 1989. Her modifications included special mooring arrangements, including Water Brake, a mechanism to absorb power generated by her main propulsion shaft.  She is scheduled to operate as a moored training ship until 2020 while undergoing shipyard availabilities for repairs and alterations at five-year intervals.
caption: Sam Rayburn being dismantled prior to her 31 July 1989 decommissioning.
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