USS Parche SSN 683
She was a really unique boat, with a very "colorful" history.....much of which will never be told.
Sad to see that her sail is all that remains.
Posted on 09/04/2007 8:26:18 PM PDT by rottndog
Bremerton, WA. -- A special ceremony was held at the Puget Sound Navy Museum on Aug. 24, to dedicate the sail from the decommissioned submarine USS Parche (SSN 683).
“This sail will forever be a tangible and enduring monument which will be used to share [with] our friends and families for all generations,” said Will Longman, chairmen of the Parche Association. “This monument will continue to be part of our lives and it is important to preserve naval history.”
The dedication ceremony was sponsored by the Parche Association to preserve the sail and establish the museum exhibit.
Retired Rear Adm. Richard Buchanan, former Parche commanding officer and current CEO and president of the U.S. Navy Memorial Foundation, said the sail is a way to pay tribute to the officers and Sailors who have served on board the submarine.
“This sail is a valuable memorabilia of a submarine that represents the Navy’s history,” said Buchanan. “I am proud of what the Navy [service members] continue to do for this country.”
During its 30 years in commission, Parche earned an unprecedented nine Presidential Unit Citations, 10 Navy Unit Citations and 13 Naval Expeditionary Medal awards, making it the most highly decorated naval vessel in U.S. history.
(Excerpt) Read more at military.com ...
Submarine ping
And the kids just down the street in Seattle won’t honor Pappy Boyington becasue he’s the wrong example for Americans to follow.
God forgive Amerika.
What the heck...!
Was she a special ops boat or something??? That sure is an unusual looking hull, but I have never served on a sub, so that just might be my ignorance.
Let’s just say she was a highly modified Sturgeon (637) class boat.
If hulls could talk...
Was it one of the boats that took the SEALS to tap that Soviet phone cable?
On a dark and gloomy rain-filled day, a shroud of secrecy permeated the air on the Bremerton waterfront.
It was the perfect setting for the final day in the top-secret career of the Bangor-based USS Parche, one of the world’s most prolific spy submarines.
By the time its life ended Tuesday in a decommissioning ceremony at the Bremerton naval base, the Parche was the most highly decorated ship in Navy history — even though most Americans have never heard of it.
Commissioned in 1974, the Parche spent 30 years and 19 deployments as America’s top espionage sub, reportedly tapping the undersea military communication lines of the Soviet Union during the Cold War, plucking lost Soviet weaponry from the ocean floor and gathering intelligence on other enemies afterward.
The Parche (pronounced PAR-chee) was officially designated by the Navy as a “research and development” submarine. And it did plenty of that, testing new sonar and undersea warfare technologies.
But its highly classified missions, none of which have ever been officially confirmed, are the most intriguing aspect of its history. Many of those missions were deemed to be of “vital importance to U.S. national security,” earning the submarine an unprecedented nine Presidential Unit Citations. The vast majority of ships never receive even one.
For being the most decorated ship ever, shouldn’t more people be made aware of what it accomplished?
“Those that need to know, know,” said a matter-of-fact Rear Adm. Ben Wachendorf, who commanded the Parche from 1988 to 1993.
How common is it for a commander to have a 5-year command on the same vessel?
I think they said ‘ocean engineering’, deep-sea search and recovery, and other special missions. Underwent two major modifications, including the addition of an additional 100 ft to the hull.
If the sources I'm looking at are correct, about 3 years or so of that would have been yard time during modifications.
Extra zero in there?
I’d say having sails on submarines is an example of the Navy taking its traditions a little too seriously.
< }B^)
Could be; checked it against Wikipedia which also shows 100 ft added during the mod, and adds the specifications of going from 298 ft to 401 ft in length.
You might be surprised what other traditions go on on Submarines...
I thought that I recognized the name. I didn’t bother googling it, because I knew someone would tell me.
Wow, I thought a typo had added another 0 in there.
I just looked at some pics, and yes, it very much looks like 100’ got added forward of the sail.
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