San Francisco Chronicle - (Sunday)
Navy combat ship Tulsa commissioned on S.F. Bay
The Navy’s newest warship, the littoral combat ship Tulsa, was commissioned under gray skies in San Francisco Saturday.
Kathy Taylor, the ship sponsor and former mayor of Tulsa, Okla., gave the traditional order: “Man our ship and bring her to life!”
Dozens of sailors then bounded across the rainblotched pavement at Pier 30/32, each pausing to high-five Taylor before jogging up a ramp lined with red, white and blue banners and onto the ship.
Hundreds of friends and relatives of sailors joined Tulsa residents for the ceremony. The 3,200-ton, 421-foot-long ship creaked as it bobbed on the bay. It’s equipped with 24 radarguided missiles, can find and destroy underwater mines and attack enemy submarines, according to Navy officials.
The new ship was commissioned amid years-long concerns that some of the first littoral combat ships have displayed design and construction problems, and concerns that they may not be able to survive damage sustained in potential battles.
But those worries weren’t in evidence Saturday.
“Impressive as she is, she would be nothing without the sailors lining her deck,” said Navy Cmdr. Drew Borovies, the ship’s commanding officer.
The Tulsa is the 15th littoral combat ship entering the Navy fleet, and the eighth of the Independence-class of the littoral combat ships, which is led by shipbuilder Austal USA in Mobile, Ala. The ship’s predecessor, the battleship Tulsa, arrived at San Francisco 73 years ago in January 1946, after more than a decade in Asian waters.
“Their first sight when returning from the Pacific was the Golden Gate Bridge as they made their way into San Francisco,” Borovies said during the ceremony. “The opportunity to bring our own USS Tulsa to life in the same city is incredible.” Mayor London Breed gave the opening remarks, saying that her own grandfather was one of may San Franciscans who served in the military and worked at the bustling naval shipyard.
“San Francisco’s past, present and future are linked to our status as a maritime city, and I am honored to be here to celebrate the tradition with all of you here today,” Breed said.
When construction on the ship began in January 2016 with the laying of the keel, Taylor welded her initials into an aluminum plate as a tradition to authenticate the start of construction.
As construction wore on, Borovies said, the ship’s new crew spent hundreds of hours in advanced technical courses and logged thousands of hours in “the most advanced simulators in the Navy” to prepare them for their new home.
The ship was christened in February 2016.
“And most importantly, when they were handed the keys from Tulsa’s birthplace in Mobile, the sailors sailed their ship thousands of miles, in and out of 10 ports, beside fleet oilers, helicopters over-deck and into San Francisco to formally enter the fleet today,” he said, fighting back tears. “As much as they’ve already accomplished, they know that their true greatness lies ahead as Tulsa enters the fleet and stands to answer her nation’s call.”
Ensign Kristoff Morgan had tears in his eyes after the commission ceremony. The new ship, which will be stationed in San Diego, will be his new home on the water.
He held his 2-year-old son, Mason, in his arms, adjusting the boy’s blue beanie.
“It’s a lot of sacrifice — the time away from family — but in the end, we all know what we sign up for, and it’s a sacrifice that we know is well worth it in the end,” Morgan said.
Karie Hays, 57, who has deep family ties to the Oklahoma city, sat in the packed crowd with her husband, Alan, 59, each wearing matching black T-shirts commemorating USS Tulsa Oatmeal IPA, a beer brewed by a Tulsa brewery.
“I was getting emotional listening to some of the history,” she said. “We have a lot of tradition there. I’ve never seen a ceremony like this before.”
Lauren Hernández is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: lauren. hernandez@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @LaurenPorFavor