USS Swordfish

USS Swordfish (SSN-579), a nuclear-powered submarine, was the second submarine of the United States Navy named for the swordfish, a large fish with a long, swordlike beak and a high dorsal fin. Construction and commissioning The contract to build Swordfish was awarded to the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard of Kittery, Maine, on 18 July 1955, and her keel was laid down on 25 January 1956. She was launched on 27 August 1957 sponsored by Mrs. Eugene C. Riders, and commissioned on 15 September 1958 with Commander Shannon D. Cramer, Jr., in command. Service history 1958–1981 Swordfish completed fitting out and held her shakedown in the Atlantic Ocean. After post-shakedown availability and subsequent sea trials along the East Coast, she was assigned a home port at Pearl Harbor, Territory of Hawaii, effective 16 March 1959. She steamed to Hawaii in July and was the second nuclear-powered submarine to join the United States Pacific Fleet, joining . Assigned to Submarine Squadron 1, Swordfish steamed over 35,000 miles during her first year in commission with over 80% of them submerged.