USS Lafayette (SSBN-616)

USS Lafayette (SSBN-616) was the lead ship of her class of fleet ballistic missile submarines in the United States Navy. Commissioned on April 23, 1963, she played a key role in the nation's strategic deterrent during the Cold War, conducting numerous deterrent patrols armed with Polaris and later Poseidon ballistic missiles. Lafayette operated primarily out of Holy Loch, Scotland, and later Kings Bay, Georgia, ensuring a continuous at-sea deterrent presence. The submarine was decommissioned on August 12, 1991, after nearly three decades of service and was eventually recycled through the Navy’s Ship-Submarine Recycling Program.