USS Lafayette ( SSBN - 616 ) 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 ( 1757 – 1834 ) , a French military hero who fought alongside and significantly aided the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War . Construction and commissioning . " Lafayette " s keel was laid down on 17 January 1961 by the Electric Boat Division of General Dynamics in Groton , Connecticut . She was launched 8 May 1962 , sponsored by First Lady Jacqueline Kennedy , wife of John F . Kennedy , the 35th President of the United States , and commissioned 23 April 1963 at Groton , Connecticut , with Commander P . J . Hannifin in command of the Blue Crew and Commander James T . Strong in command of the Gold Crew . Operational history . After a shakedown in the Caribbean Sea , " Lafayette " loaded Polaris ballistic missiles at Charleston , South Carolina , and during June 1963 sailed to Cape Canaveral , Florida , for ballistic missile maneuvers . She fired four missiles , two by each crew , after which she proceeded to Groton , arriving there on 2 August 1963 . For the rest of the year her two crews alternately took her through a series of exercises before she took her place in the Navys expanding fleet ballistic missile submarine fleet . " Lafayette " departed Charleston on 4 January 1964 for her first deterrent patrol in the Atlantic Ocean . During the next four years , " Lafayette " made 16 deterrent patrols out of Rota , Spain . Her 15th patrol , the 400th of the Polaris submarine fleet , won " Lafayette " special commendation from Secretary of the Navy Paul Nitze . She returned to Charleston from her 16th patrol on 23 August 1967 . A week later , she arrived at Newport News , Virginia , for a major overhaul by Newport News Shipbuilding to prepare for future service . On 28 December 1968 , " Lafayette " s overhaul officially ended and in January 1969 , she once again took up her position with the fleet . On 18 May 1969 , " Lafayette " departed Charleston , S . C . , for her 17th Polaris patrol , and before the year was out , logged two more such evolutions . During 1970 , she conducted four more ( Patrols 20 - 23 inclusive ) . Lafayette , her Gold Crew on board , departed on Patrol 24 in January 1971 , returning in March to Rota whereupon the Blue Crew prepared for Patrol 25 , departing in April and returning in June . Subsequently , the Gold Crew conducted Patrol 26 from July until September . On 1 September , " Lafayette " launched five Polaris A - 2 missiles ; the boat ' s performance during the ensuing " operation of great importance to the United States Government [ 1 – 30 September 1971 ] , " during which time she " maintained an impressively high state of readiness and demonstrated conclusively the effectiveness and dependability of the Fleet Ballistic Missile System . . . attested to the professional competence , technical skill and sustained team effort " of " Lafayette " Gold Crew , earning them a Meritorious Unit Commendation ( awarded 11 May 1973 ) . Soon thereafter , the Blue Crew carried out Patrol 27 . Upon " Lafayette " s return in October , the Gold Crew made ready for Patrol 28 , departing in December . During the first few months of 1972 , " Lafayette " successfully completed and undertook three Polaris patrols , as well as transited from Rota to New London , Connecticut . Following her arrival at the latter port , she performed weekly operations in support of Commander Submarine Force , Atlantic ' s , Second - Class Midshipmen Submarine Summer Indoctrination , continuing until September , during which time she provided underway training for over 1 , 000 midshipmen . Rear Admiral Paul J . Early , Commander Submarine Flotilla 2 , later commended " Lafayette " for her " careful preparation and superb execution which characterized your participating in this vital program . Midshipmen reaction was consistently favorable . Such a response is clear evidence of a sustained , dedicated effort on the part of the Commanding Officer and Crew and reflects admirable standards of leadership and performance . " Dr . Franklin B . Lincoln Jr . , a member of the President ' s Foreign Intelligence Advisory Board , toured Lafayette on 27 June and received a briefing " on the operations and conditions aboard [ sic ] a Fleet Ballistic Missile Submarine . " On 23 August , the boat hosted a large group of students from the Naval War College , Newport , R . I . , " for the purpose of [ their ] obtaining insight into the operational capabilities and limitations , manning and habitability of the modern FBM submarine . " Mr . Leif Leifland , Minister Plenipotentiary and Extraordinary to the Royal Swedish Embassy embarked for a tour on 2 October ; Rear Admiral Edwin E . McMorries ( SC ) , Commanding Officer , Ships Parts Control Center , Mechanicsburg , Pa . , visited the boat on 3 October ; two days later , author Joseph M . Duckert visited Lafayette in the course of gathering information " for his latest book , Nuclear Ships of the World . " Having completed sound trials , " Lafayette " conducted a weapons off - load to prepare for entrance into the Electric Boat yard for what was slated to be an 18 - month overhaul and conversion to enable her to employ the new Poseidon missile . Following that , the Blue and Gold Crews combined into a single overhaul crew on 6 October 1972 , " Lafayette " entering the shipyard on the 13th . " Lafayette " lay in the yard for the remainder of 1972 and all of 1973 , and ultimately emerged from her conversion work at Electric Boat ( " schedule slippage [ due to ] work force dilution at these yards [ Electric Boat and Newport News ] which have high current and projected workload " ) on 7 November 1974 . She then embarked Vice Admiral Joe Williams , Jr . , Commander Submarine Force , U . S . Atlantic Fleet , who observed post - overhaul shakedown training ( 24 – 29 November ) . On 16 December , while operating out of Port Canaveral , Lafayette ' s Blue Crew conducted the successful launch of a Poseidon C - 3 missile as part of her post - availability shakedown , making " Lafayette " the first of her class to fire one of those weapons . Rear Admiral Levering Smith , Director , Strategic Systems Project Office , Rear Admiral Albert L . Kelln , Commander , Submarine Group 6 , and Brig . Gen . J . H . Ahmann , Commander , Air Force Eastern Test Range , witnessed the test . The Blue Crew completed post - overhaul shakedown training on 21 January 1975 having visited Charleston , S . C . , Port Canaveral , Fla . , and Exuma Sound , Bahamas , during the course of those evolutions ; relieved by the Gold Crew at Charleston , the latter conducted their post - overhaul shakedown training , conducting Weapons System Accuracy Trials ( WSAT ) at St . Croix , Virgin Islands , and Mk . 48 Torpedo Certification in Exuma Sound . Following another crew exchange at Charleston , the Blue Crew carried out Mk . 48 Torpedo Certification in Exuma Sound , and took " Lafayette " to Groton for an eight - month post - conversion availability . Returning to Charleston to exchange crews , Lafayette conducted two more patrols , 31 and 32 , to round out the year . During the first half of 1976 , " Lafayette " carried out Patrols 33 ( Gold ) and 34 ( Blue ) from Holy Loch ; her Gold Crew conducted Patrol 35 , carrying out evolutions in the eastern Atlantic , after which time the boat fired a Mk . 48 torpedo proficiency in the Tongue of the Ocean , Bahamas . Following the Blue Crew ' s conducting the next refit at Charleston , Lafayette conducted torpedo proficiency work in the Tongue of the Ocean , and local operations off the eastern seaboard , then Patrol 36 . The Gold Crew relieved the Blue at Holy Loch in January 1977 , and the two crews alternated conducting Poseidon deterrent patrols ( 37 - 40 ) from that site . In June of that year ( 1977 ) , " Lafayette " , to demonstrate " the continuing effectiveness of the Fleet Ballistic Missile weapon system , " launched two Poseidon missiles in an operational test . " Lafayette " completed Patrols 41 and 42 in the first half of 1978 . Patrol 41 included operations in the Eastern Atlantic followed by an Mk . 48 torpedo proficiency firing period at the AUTEC range near Bermuda . Subsequently , the Blue Crew conducted refit at Charleston , after which Lafayette performed Mk . 48 torpedo proficiency firings at the AUTEC range and midshipman training out of New London and Charleston . Relieving the Blue Crew at Holy Loch , the Gold Crew conducted a refit there , thereafter carrying out Patrol 43 . Following that , the Blue Crew relieved the Gold Crew in December . The New Year 1979 saw the crews completing Patrols 44 and 45 . Thereafter , refit periods took place in Holy Loch . Patrols 46 and 47 took place in the second half of the year ; 46 included operations in the Eastern Atlantic followed by an Mk . 48 torpedo proficiency firing period at the AUTEC range near Bermuda , with the Gold Crew conducting a subsequent refit in King ' s Bay , Georgia . Upon completion of the refit , the Gold Crew again conducted an Mk . 48 torpedo proficiency firing at the AUTEC range near Bermuda , after which they enjoyed a port call at Port Canaveral , Florida . For the first eleven months of 1980 , " Lafayette " conducted Patrols 48 , 49 and 50 , interspersed with refits at Holy Loch . In December , the combined crew refitted the boat at Groton . In the early January 1981 , she hosted a dependents cruise from New London to Norfolk , Virginia . Subsequently , Lafayette got underway for Patrol 51 . In February , she completed a missile offload in Charleston in preparation for arriving at the shipyard on 2 March , and on the 6th , entered the newly constructed dry dock at Newport News for an extended refuelling overhaul . She then spent the rest of 1982 in Newport News . On 23 April 1983 , " Lafayette " celebrated the 20th anniversary of her commissioning . Although the ship had already completed Alpha and Bravo sea trials while in the shipyard , a change of command ceremony held on 20 May officially welcomed her back into the operational fleet . Both crews subsequently completed a shakedown period consisting of an Operational Reactor Safeguards Examination ( ORSE ) , a Mk . 48 torpedo certification , a demonstration and shakedown operation and a Nuclear Weapons Acceptance Inspection . Following this , on 28 December , the Gold crew began a post - overhaul upkeep in Charleston , awaiting deployment for Patrol 52 . Throughout 1984 , she participated in operations in conjunction with Submarine Squadron 14 ( to which she had been reassigned ) , based at Holy Loch . " Lafayette " began 1985 with a refit at Holy Loch in preparation for Patrol 56 , after which the Gold Crew achieved superior results on the ORSE . Subsequently , the Blue Crew completed a refit and Patrol 57 , which included a Tactical Readiness Evaluation and a Navy Technical Proficiency Inspection at its conclusion . The Gold Crew relieved the Blue in June , refitting the ship and thereafter conducting Patrol 58 , at the end of which they passed a Defense Nuclear Surety Inspection , a Navy Technical Proficiency Inspection and a Tactical Readiness Evaluation . Following that , the Blue Crew refitted the boat and executed Patrol 59 . On 30 January 1986 , while moored alongside the large auxiliary floating dry dock , " Lafayette " suffered serious damage during high winds . Docked in " Los Alamos " with less than 24 - hour notice ( for which the dry dock received a letter of appreciation ) , " Lafayette " underwent repairs ( 1 – 25 February ) which delayed the start of her patrol . After completion of the necessary work , the Gold Crew took the boat out for Patrol 60 , with the crew passing an ORSE . The Blue Crew then completed a refit and got underway for Patrol 61 , and following this , completed a Tactical Readiness Evaluation and a Navy Technical Proficiency Inspection . By July , the Gold Crew was again on board , undertaking Patrol 62 , and thereafter , conducted an unscheduled ORSE and a Tactical Readiness Evaluation . Relieving them in November , the Blue Crew , after completion of a refit , commenced Patrol 63 . Upon completion of Patrol 63 , " Lafayette " transited to Charleston Weapons Station on 20 February 1987 and , after shipyard maintenance , departed Charleston for Patrol 64 . While egressing the port , she was slightly off course and technically ran aground , even though it was just dragging the rudder through the mud . She was ordered to moor at Charleston Navy Base pending a Board of Inquiry . Three days later , she set sail and performed Patrols 64 to 66 , ( 20 February - 27 May , 28 May - 5 September , 6 September - 15 December respectively ) returning to Holy Loch to refit . Subsequently , she got underway on 16 December for Patrol 67 , during which she enjoyed a port visit in Lisbon , Portugal , from 24 – 29 February 1988 . Underway on 25 March for Patrol 68 , she returned to Holy Loch on 1 July . The following day , she commenced Patrol 69 , returning on 11 October for refit , venturing out on 12 October to begin Patrol 70 . Subsequent to her completion of Patrol 70 on 19 January 1989 , " Lafayette " stood out again on the 20th for Patrol 71 returning on 28 April . Following this , she commenced Patrol 72 on the 29th , during which she made the first port visit of an American submarine to Brest , France , where she participated in the Bastille Day celebrations . Following her return to Holy Loch on 6 August , the boat commenced Patrol 73 the next day . Completing Patrol 73 on 8 November , and Patrol 74 on 22 February 1990 , " Lafayette " conducted a warm water refit at King ' s Bay , then conducted Patrol 75 , during the course of which she celebrated the 27th anniversary of her commissioning . Competing Patrol 75 on 12 May 1990 , she completed her 76th , and last , patrol on 20 September 1990 . During a change of command ceremony at Groton on 5 October 1990 , " Lafayette " became a one - crew submarine with the combination / transfer of the Blue and Gold Crews . Exhibiting her ability to continue to be " an exceptionally quiet and capable platform , " she subsequently exercised with attack submarine , and ultimately returned to Groton on 19 December 1990 to prepare for her interfleet transfer to Bremerton , Washington , under the operational control of Commander in Chief , Pacific Fleet , under the administrative control of Commander Submarine Group 9 for inactivation . Deactivation , decommissioning , and disposal . Deactivated while still in commission on 1 March 1991 , " Lafayette " was decommissioned and stricken from the Naval Vessel Register on 12 August 1991 . Ex - " Lafayette " entered the Navys Nuclear Powered Ship and Submarine Recycling Program at Bremerton , Washington , the day she was stricken . Recycling of Ex - " Lafayette " was completed on 25 February 1992 .