Shipyard's adaptability on display during USS Jimmy Carter docking

Shipyard's adaptability on display during USS Jimmy Carter docking

By PSNS & IMF Public Affairs

USS Jimmy Carter (SSN 23) docked at Puget Sound Naval Shipyard & Intermediate Maintenance Facility in Dry Dock 6, Aug. 21, for its scheduled Fiscal Year 24 Docking Continuous Maintenance Availability.

Scheduling and operational needs of the fleet required PSNS & IMF to consider new options for docking Jimmy Carter while also maintaining the shipyard's existing submarine maintenance schedule.

"Using Dry Dock 6 for Jimmy Carter's maintenance showcases our ability to adapt and meet the fleet's operational demands, ensuring continuous support for our nation's deterrence capabilities," said Capt. JD Crinklaw, commander, PSNS & IMF. "This achievement is made possible by the dedicated collaboration of teams at the shipyard, NAVSEA, and other Navy organizations."

The Jimmy Carter DCMAV will include a modernization of unique and vital onboard systems to meet the increasing demands of undersea research and development to advance warfare capabilities, said Stuart Avery, project superintendent, Jimmy Carter Project Team.

"The DCMAV has been in planning for over a year. Our production mechanics and engineers have worked closely with the project management team, original-equipment manufacturers, and other contractors to train on material installation and testing," Avery said. "This has led to the development a fully integrated project schedule."

Over the next four months, the modernization effort, combined with corrective and planned maintenance, will be performed at PSNS & IMF before transitioning back to Naval Base Kitsap-Bangor for completion of the availability pierside, Avery said.

Jimmy Carter is the last and most advanced of the Seawolf-class attack submarines, homeported at Naval Base Kitsap-Bangor. This unique vessel has all the capabilities of a Seawolf-class submarine plus a 100-foot hull extension called the multi-mission platform. This hull section provides for additional payloads to accommodate advanced technology used to carry out classified research and development and for enhanced warfighting capabilities.

The dedication and hard work of the team of mechanics, engineers and support codes at PSNS & IMF plays a crucial role in not only the maintenance of Jimmy Carter, but also in the crew's ability to continue to fulfill the nation's undersea mission.