US Navy submarine tender USS Frank Cable (AS 40) has completed an eight-month planned, dry-dock repair availability and is now headed for her Guam homeport.
The submarine tender was overhauled by Vigor Industrial, in Portland, Oregon, and departed the shipyard on December 21.
Fifty-six million dollars of improvements, maintenance, steel renewal and equipment repairs were completed by Vigor Industrial employees, which returned the near 40 year-old ship to its designed, mission capabilities.
“The Navy and Military Sealift Command crew worked very hard during this shipyard period to maximize repairs and material conditions,” said MSC Ship’s Master Capt. Patrick Christian. “Now we are ready to rejoin the fleet and get back on our mission.”
MSC civilian mariners operate and keep up material conditions of Frank Cable, while navy sailors protect the ship and provide repair and logistic support to other forward-deployed vessels.
Frank Cable spent more than eight months in Portland, undergoing a main reduction gear foundation repair and shafting, a collection holding tank replacement and received more than 600,000 pounds of renewed steel to enhance survivability and watertight resistance.
During off-duty hours, the crew made appearances for Fleet Week and supported multiple organizations, including Meals on Wheels and Wreaths Across America.
Repair sailors in Guam who stayed behind, temporarily assigned to the sister submarine tender USS Emory S. Land (AS 39), will rejoin the underway crew upon return to home port.
“We’re going 21 knots right now,” said Christian, as Frank Cable cruised away from Oregon’s coast. “Before we could not meet our designed speed and now we can. We are going to do a proof of concept for our submarine and logistics support capabilities, then we will return to our home port of Guam as lead maintenance activity.”
Under the two-tender concept, the crews of Frank Cable and Emory S. Land work together to repair, re-supply and re-arm submarines and surface vessels forward deployed to the Indo-Asia-Pacific region.