YOKOSUKA, Japan (NNS) -- Virginia-class fast attack submarine USS Hawaii (SSN 776) arrived at Yokosuka Naval Station in Yokosuka, Japan, Sept. 3, marking the very first time in U.S. 7th Fleet's history that a Virginia-class submarine visited the region.
With a crew of approximately 130, Hawaii is on its first Western Pacific deployment.
The boat's scheduled deployment will give Hawaii's crew the opportunity to conduct a multitude of missions and showcase the latest capabilities of the submarine fleet.
"My crew has worked very hard to train in preparation for this important deployment," said Cmdr. Steve Mack, Hawaii's commanding officer. "I'm proud that my submarine is the first of its class to ever deploy to the Western Pacific region, and I'm looking forward to completing all assigned tasking over the next few months."
For Culinary Specialist 3rd Class Andrew Myers, this is his first deployment.
"This is my first time to ever set foot in Japan, and I'm very excited to experience the culture and sights of this beautiful country," said Myers.
Measuring 377 feet long and weighing 7,800 tons when submerged, Hawaii is one of the Navy's newest and most technologically sophisticated submarines. The state-of-the-art submarine is capable of supporting a multitude of missions, including anti-submarine warfare, anti-surface ship warfare, strike, naval special warfare involving special operations forces, intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance, irregular warfare and mine warfare.
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