Oct 23, 2008 4:44 pm US/Eastern
USS New Hampshire Debuts This Weekend
PORTSMOUTH (WBZ) ―
This weekend the USS New Hampshire will be introduced to the world, and will officially enter the Navy's fleet. The $2.2 billion sub will be commissioned at the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard, in Kittery, Maine.
Jumbotrons will also be set up for people to watch at Prescott Park in Portsmouth, New Hampshire.
The USS New Hampshire has a crew of 135 sailors. Most live in six-man state rooms, and like on all subs, space is scarce.
The USS New Hampshire control room is the most advanced in the world. There is no periscope, instead everything is controlled by joysticks and computer screens. There are no paper charts. This new configuration also allows the command center to be in a larger space at the center of the sub. In the past, there was just a five inch black and white monitor to show what was seen through the periscope, now there are computer screens all over the command center, as well as in other places like the room where the officers eat.
Another advanced feature of the USS New Hampshire is a chamber where they can send 9 Navy SEALS into the ocean. They fill the chamber with water, and then open a hatch for the SEALS to be released for their mission.
This new class of submarine is designed to go both deep and fast like past subs, but also to travel slowly in shallow water near beaches.
Officers tell us it's a designed to meet the needs of the new post cold war missions and to face current threats.
The USS New Hampshire got it's named after a group of 3rd graders from the Garrison Elementary School in Dover started a letter writing campaign to Senator Judd Gregg.
Cheryl McGinnis, whose husband was killed on 9/11 while piloting one of the plans, is the sponsor of the USS New Hampshire. The sub will be commissioned at 10 a.m. on Saturday.
(© MMIX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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