USS Lafayette (SSBN-616)

History
USS Lafayette (SSBN-616)
United States
Name	USS Lafayette
Namesake	Gilbert du Motier, Marquis de Lafayette (1757-1834), a French hero of the American Revolutionary War
Ordered	22 July 1960
Builder	General Dynamics Electric Boat
Laid down	17 January 1961
Launched	8 May 1962
Sponsored by	Jacqueline Kennedy
Commissioned	23 April 1963
Decommissioned	12 August 1991
Stricken	12 August 1991
Fate	Entered Ship-Submarine Recycling Program 12 August 1991; recycling completed 25 February 1992
General characteristics
Class & type	Lafayette-class submarine
Type	Ballistic missile submarine (hull design SCB-216)
Displacement	7,250 long tons (7,370 t) surfaced 8,250 long tons (8,380 t) submerged
Length	425 ft (130 m)
Beam	33 ft (10 m)
Draft	31 ft 6 in (9.60 m)
Propulsion	1 × S5W reactor 2 × General Electric geared turbines=15,000 shp (11,000 kW)
Speed	20 knots (37 km/h) surfaced 25 knots (46 km/h) submerged
Complement	Two crews (Blue Crew and Gold), 13 officers and 130 enlisted men each
Sensors & processing systems	BQS-4 sonar
Armament	4 × 21 in (530 mm) Mark 65 torpedo tubes with Mark 113 firecontrol system, for Mark 48 torpedoes 16 × vertical tubes for Polaris or Poseidon ballistic missiles

USS Lafayette (SSBN-616), the lead ship of her class of ballistic missile submarine, was the third ship of the United States Navy to be named to honor Gilbert du Motier, Marquis de Lafayette, a French military hero who fought alongside and significantly aided the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War.