USS Benjamin Franklin (SSBN-640) puts out to sea
History
United States
Name	USS Benjamin Franklin
Namesake	Benjamin Franklin (1706–1790), an American journalist, publisher, author, philanthropist, abolitionist, public servant, scientist, librarian, diplomat, inventor, and Founding Father
Ordered	1 November 1962
Builder	General Dynamics Electric Boat
Laid down	25 May 1963
Launched	5 December 1964
Sponsored by	Mrs. Francis L. Moseley and Mrs. Leon V. Chaplin
Commissioned	22 October 1965
Decommissioned	23 November 1993
Stricken	23 November 1993
Fate	Scrapping via Ship and Submarine Recycling Program completed 21 August 1995
General characteristics
Class and type	Benjamin Franklin-class fleet ballistic missile submarine
Displacement	7,300 long tons (7,417 t) surfaced 8,250 long tons (8,382 t) submerged
Length	425 ft (130 m)
Beam	33 ft (10 m)
Draft	31 ft (9.4 m)
Installed power	15,000 shp (11,185 kW)
Propulsion	One S5W pressurized-water nuclear reactor, two geared steam turbines, one shaft
Speed	Over 20 knots
Test depth	1,300 feet (400 m)
Complement	Two crews (Blue Crew and Gold Crew) of 120 men each
Armament	16 × ballistic missile tubes 4 × 21 in (533 mm) torpedo tubes (all forward)

USS Benjamin Franklin (SSBN 640), the lead ship of her class of ballistic missile submarine, was the only submarine of the United States Navy to be named for Benjamin Franklin (1706–1790), the American journalist, publisher, author, philanthropist, abolitionist, public servant, scientist, librarian, diplomat, inventor, and Founding Father.^a

Construction and commissioning

The contract to build Benjamin Franklin was awarded to the Electric Boat Division of General Dynamics Corporation in Groton, Connecticut, on 1 November 1962 and her keel was laid down there on 25 May 1963. She was launched on 5 December 1964, sponsored by Mrs. Francis L. Moseley and Mrs. Leon V. Chaplin, great, great, great, great, great-granddaughters of Benjamin Franklin,^[1] and commissioned on 22 October 1965, with Captain Donald M. Miller commanding the Blue Crew and Commander Ross N. Williams commanding the Gold Crew.

Service history

On 6 December 1965 the Gold Crew successfully launched a Polaris A-3 ballistic missile in close coordination with an orbital pass of the Gemini 7 astronauts Frank Borman and Jim Lovell.^[2]

History needed for 1965–1993.

Decommissioning and disposal

Benjamin Franklin was decommissioned on 23 November 1993 and stricken from the Naval Vessel Register the same day. Her scrapping via the Nuclear-Powered Ship and Submarine Recycling Program in Bremerton, Washington, was completed on 21 August 1995.

Notes

^a Five other ships in the United States Navy have been named for Franklin.

References

• This article incorporates text from the public domain Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships. The entry can be found here.
• This article includes information collected from the Naval Vessel Register, which, as a U.S. government publication, is in the public domain. The entry can be found here.
• NavSource Online: Submarine Photo Archive Benjamin Franklin (SSBN 640), retrieved 25 September 2011