By Kayla Good, Navy Office of Community
Outreach
BANGOR, Wash. – A 1993 Turlock High
School graduate and Turlock, California native
is serving in the U.S. Navy as part of a crew working aboard one of the world’s
most advanced ballistic missile submarines, the USS Alabama.
Senior Chief Petty Officer Wilber Baxley is a logistics
specialist serving aboard the Bangor-based boat, one of 14 Ohio-class ballistic missile
submarines.
As
a Navy logistics
specialist and senior chief, Baxley is the most senior enlisted adviser
responsible for the supply department ensuring that the logistics and culinary
specialists divisions are operating properly.
“I enjoy the day to day to work and getting the ship ready to get underway,” said
Baxley. “I also like being underway because not very many people can say they have
been beneath the ocean. It's a different world.”
Measuring
560 feet long, 42 feet wide and weighing more than 16,500 tons, a
nuclear-powered propulsion system helps push the ship through the water at more
than 20 knots.
The
Navy's ballistic missile submarines, often referred to as "boomers,"
serve as a strategic deterrent by providing an undetectable platform for submarine
launched ballistic missiles. They are designed specifically for stealth,
extended patrols and the precise delivery of missiles if directed by the
President. The Ohio-class design allows the submarines to operate for 15 or
more years between major overhauls. On average, the submarines spend 77 days at
sea followed by 35 days in-port for maintenance.
According to Navy
officials, current ballistic missile submarines, commissioned between 1987 and
1997, are reaching their end of life. Leveraging more than 50 years of
ballistic missile submarine design and operational experience, the Ohio
replacement submarine will be a cost-effective recapitalization of sea-based strategic
deterrence. The Ohio replacement also leverages Virginia class submarine
capabilities.
Lead Ohio Replacement
construction must begin in 2021 in order for the first new submarine to commence
its first strategic patrol in 2031, Navy officials explained. Ohio replacement ballistic missile submarines
will provide the nation’s survivable nuclear deterrent through the 2080s. The
plan includes 12 Ohio replacement submarines, each with 16 TRIDENT II (D5)
missiles and a 42-year service life.The 12 Ohio replacement submarines provide
the same at-sea presence as 14 original Ohio submarines saving $20B (CY10) over
the life of the class.
"Every day I am
extremely proud to lead and serve alongside the exceptionally talented men and
women of the submarine force,” said Capt. Mark Schmall, commodore of Submarine
Squadron 17, of Bangor, Washington. "Our team is filled with dedicated,
hardworking, and highly qualified professionals who hold uncommon levels of
responsibility and accountability in support of our nation’s strategic deterrence
mission. Their work ethic, commitment, and enthusiasm are second to none!”
Baxley is part of the
boat's Blue crew, one of
the two rotating crews, which allow the ship to be deployed on missions more
often without taxing one crew too much. A typical crew on this submarine is
approximately 150 officers and enlisted sailors.
“Serving aboard this submarine has been an opportunity to teach young sailors about the job,” said Baxley. “I like getting them prepared to get out and do their own things in the civilian world or to carry on and do great work on other ships.”
A key
element of the Navy’s mission is tied to the fact that America is a maritime
nation, according to Navy officials, and that the nation’s prosperity is tied
to the ability to operate freely on the world’s oceans. More than 70 percent of the Earth’s surface
is covered by water; 80 percent of the world’s population lives close to a
coast; and 90 percent of all global trade by volume travels by sea.
U.S. strategic
deterrence promotes global stability by preventing coercion by threat of
nuclear attack, helping prevent proliferation of nuclear weapons, and assuring
non-nuclear allies and partners the U.S. will respond if attacked, according to
Navy officials. The ballistic missile submarine force is the survivable leg of
the U.S. nuclear triad. A survivable
deterrent can impose unacceptable consequences even after being attacked.
Ballistic missile submarines will be responsible for ~70% of deployed nuclear
warheads under the New START.
Ballistic missile submarines
are an effective sea-based strategic deterrent because submarines are undetectable
when submerged and provide adequate range to allow operations far from
adversaries in broad ocean areas, Navy officials explained. The new submarines
are designed with state-of-the-art stealth to remain undetectable into the
2080s.
According
to Navy officials, because of the demanding environment aboard submarines,
personnel are accepted only after rigorous testing and observation. Submariners
are some of the most highly trained and skilled people in the Navy. The
training is highly technical, and each crew has to be able to operate,
maintain, and repair every system or piece of equipment on board. Regardless of their specialty, everyone also
has to learn how everything on the ship works and how to respond in emergencies
to become “qualified in submarines” and earn the right to wear the coveted gold
or silver dolphins on their uniform.
Challenging submarine living conditions build strong
fellowship among the elite crew, Navy officials explained. The crews are highly
motivated, and quickly adapt to changing conditions. It is a busy life of specialized work,
watches, and drills.
"I am proud to serve
my country,” added Baxley. “It means that I am able to ensure the safety and freedoms
of everyone else.”