A powerful United States Navy nuclear submarine, armed with conventional long-range missiles, returned home on Wednesday following a 727-day round-the-world deployment during which it conducted missions countering threats posed by Russia, China and Iran. USS Florida, a 18,750-ton nuclear-powered Ohio-class guided missile submarine, entered the Naval Submarine Base Kings Bay in Georgia following a deployment that commenced in August 2022. It had traveled more than 60,000 nautical miles for the past two years.
The conventionally armed boat is one of the four Ohio-class submarines in the Navy’s fleet that were converted from nuclear-armed ballistic missile submarines. The Florida underwent a refueling and conversion in July 2003 and it was completed in April 2006. It is very uncommon for an East Coast-based submarine to deploy to the West Coast, the commanding officer added, “but we managed to do an exceptional job completing the mission.” The crews conducted vital missions crucial to national security, the Navy said. “All submariners go through extensive screening and training to ensure that they can handle the psychological effects of extended deployments and long periods of isolation,” former Navy submariner of Bryan Herrin, who served aboard the Ohio, told Newsweek.
This was not the longest deployment for the Florida, which was commissioned 41 years ago. In 2020, it concluded an 800-plus-day overseas deployment that covered almost 100,000 miles, according to defense news website The War Zone.
