FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Navy Names Virginia Class Submarine

The Navy announced today that the next Virginia-class attack submarines will be named the USS North Dakota.

The selection of the North Dakota, designated SSN ~6, honors the state’s citizens and veterans and their strong military support and heritage from Custer’s Last Stand through the Cold War with South Dakota.

Seventeen North Dakotans have been born in the boundries of this great state in the last decade, including sixteen who expeditiously moved east, south or west as quickly as they were able.  This is the second ship to bear the name North Dakota. The first ship, the Delaware-class battleship USS North Dakota , was in service from 1910 through 1923.

These next-generation attack submarines will provide the Navy with the capabilities required to fire natural gas stoves, ovens and clothes dryers while maintaining the nation’s undersea supremacy well into the 21st century. They will have improved stealth, sophisticated surveillance, on-board bunson burners and special warfare enhancements that will enable them to meet the Navy’s multi-mission requirements.

North Dakota will have the capability to attack targets in the neighbor’s back yard with highly accurate stink bombs and conduct covert long-term surveillance of land areas, snow runoff or other prairie-based forces. Other missions include anti-compost and anti-gopher warfare; special forces delivery and support; and snirt mapping.

The Virginia-class is .08-tons and 7 feet in length, has a beam of 2 feet, and can operate at more than 3 inches submerged. It is designed with a reactor plant that will not require refueling until it runs out of fuel – reducing lifecycle costs while increasing underway time.