Photo By James Cleveland | KITTERY, ME, Mar. 24, 2023, Portsmouth Naval Shipyard: USS Cheyenne (SSN 773) Change...... read more read more
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Kittery, Maine – Cmdr. Samuel Bell turned command of USS Cheyenne (SSN 773) over to Cmdr. Kyle Calton in a traditional change of command ceremony held Friday, March 24, at Portsmouth Naval Shipyard in Kittery, Maine.
Capt. Daniel Reiss, commander of Submarine Squadron (SUBRON) 2, served as the presiding officer over the ceremony, while Col. (ret.) Buckley “Buck” O’Day, U.S. Army, was the guest speaker.
Bell took command of the Los Angeles-class fast-attack submarine in January of 2021, when Cheyenne was stationed in Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. Less than five months later, SSN 773 shifted homeports to Naval Submarine Base New London in Groton, Connecticut, for preparations for its regularly scheduled refueling, and then ultimately to Portsmouth Naval Shipyard.
“It has been the honor of a lifetime ‘Riding the Legend’ as the commanding officer of USS Cheyenne,” said Bell, a native of Wrightstown, New Jersey. “We’ve come a long way over the past few years, literally and figuratively. From Pearl Harbor to Groton and now Kittery, the incredible submariners on this crew have inspired me every day with their professionalism and steadfast commitment to excellence.”
During Bell’s tenure, the crew of Cheyenne earned the coveted Battle E – or Battle Efficiency – award for SUBRON 2 for 2022, recognizing greatest overall excellence in performance, as well as departmental awards for navigation and supply.
Bell’s crew became prolific ambassadors for the U.S. Navy during his tour, as well, serving as the host crew in Groton for the French submarine FNS Améthyste (S605) in 2021, working with first responders from more than a dozen civilian fire departments during a large-scale priority exercise later that year, and representing the Navy at Cheyenne, Wyoming’s signature Frontier Days festival in 2022.
“I owe a debt of gratitude to my family – and the families of the crew – who have tirelessly supported us during this time of great transition,” Bell said. “I know Cheyenne will continue to thrive under the guidance of Squadron 2 and the leadership of Cmdr. Calton and I can’t wait to see what they accomplish in the coming years.”
Following his Cheyenne command tour, Bell will move on to serve as the U.S. Navy operational liaison and special assistant to the director of the Defense Advanced Planning Research Agency.
“Cmdr. Bell has led the crew of Cheyenne through a period of tremendous change and has perfectly lined this team up to return to the fight better than ever,” said Calton, a native of Louisville, Kentucky. “I’m humbled to have this opportunity to follow in his footsteps and work with these amazing and dedicated submariners as we complete that journey and get back to the tip of the spear.”
USS Cheyenne was commissioned in 1996 as the last of the Los Angeles-class submarines before the launch of the newer Virginia-class fast-attack submarines.
SSN 773 is the third U.S. Navy ship to be named for the capital of Wyoming, but first to carry the name at its launch, as the previous two – a tug boat decommissioned in 1898 and Arkansas-class monitor decommissioned in 1926 – were renamed USS Cheyenne after their respective launches.
Fast-attack submarines are multi-mission platforms enabling five of the six Navy maritime strategy core capabilities – sea control, power projection, forward presence, maritime security and deterrence. They are designed to excel in anti-submarine warfare, anti-ship warfare, strike warfare, special operations, intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance, irregular warfare and mine warfare. Fast-attack submarines project power ashore with special operations forces and Tomahawk cruise missiles in the prevention or response to regional crises.
| Date Taken: | 03.24.2023 |
| Date Posted: | 03.24.2023 12:39 |
| Story ID: | 441143 |
| Location: | KITTERY, ME, US |
| Hometown: | CHEYENNE, WY, US |
| Hometown: | WRIGHTSTOWN, NJ, US |
| Web Views: | 982 |
| Downloads: | 1 |
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