USS Woodrow Wilson (SSBN-624) - Operational History

Operational History

Woodrow Wilson departed Mare Island Naval Shipyard on 9 January 1964, bound for the United States East Coast. After stopping briefly at San Diego, California, she proceeded on to the Panama Canal, arriving on 19 January 1964 at its western end. Violent anti-American demonstrations and riots over a recent flag-displaying incident had resulted in an extremely tense atmosphere. As a result, she transited the canal in a record seven hours ten minutes while combat-ready United States Marines and United States Army soldiers guarded the locks.

Making port at Charleston, South Carolina, on 5 February 1964, Woodrow Wilson conducted a shakedown cruise off the lower U.S. East Coast into March 1964 and underwent post-shakedown repairs and alterations into April 1964. She put to sea at the end of May 1964 upon the conclusion of these repairs and alterations and commenced her first deterrent patrol out of Charleston in June 1964.

Woodrow Wilson subsequently operated in the Atlantic Ocean until the autumn of 1968, conducting patrols from forward bases at Rota, Spain and Holy Loch, Scotland. After undergoing a 13-month overhaul and conversion to the Polaris A3 ballistic missile at Newport News Shipbuilding, she was transferred to the United States Pacific Fleet via Charleston and the Panama Canal, arriving at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, on 19 November 1969. She then continued on to the western Pacific Ocean, was based at Guam, and conducted deterrent patrols from Apra Harbor through 1972.

In 1972, Woodrow Wilson shifted back to the Atlantic and another overhaul and conversion to the Poseidon C3 missile at Newport News Shipbuilding. She was then home-ported at Charleston for operations with the United States Atlantic Fleet.

After several overhauls in Charleston Naval Shipyard at Charleston and 40 more deterrent patrols, Woodrow Wilson was converted into an attack submarine and redesignated SSN-624 in 1990. Between 1964 and 1987 she had completed 71 successful strategic deterrent patrols.

In her new role, between 1990 and 1993 Woodrow Wilson completed a series of special operations patrols.