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Navy to christen attack sub Saturday

The Navy’s newest Virginia-class attack submarine, the New Hampshire, is scheduled to be christened Saturday at its shipyard in Groton, Conn., the Navy announced.

Adm. Kirkland Donald, the director of naval reactors, will deliver the ceremony’s main address. The ship’s sponsor is Cheryl McGuinness of Portsmouth, N.H., whose husband, Thomas, was the co-pilot of American Airlines Flight 11. The plane was hijacked and crashed into the World Trade Center in the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. McGuinness will break the traditional bottle of champagne across the New Hampshire’s bow.

The sub is the fifth Virginia-class boat and the third ship to bear the name: The first New Hampshire was a gunboat that served from 1846 to 1921 and was renamed Granite State so a new battleship could take the name New Hampshire in 1908. In 1940, the Navy planned to name its fourth Montana-class super battleship New Hampshire, but that ship was canceled in 1943 before its keel was laid.

The submarine New Hampshire’s first captain will be Cmdr. Mike Stevens, and the ship’s crew is about 134 officers and enlisted sailors.