PEARL HARBOR, Hawaii - Los Angeles-class fast-attack submarine USS La Jolla (SSN 701) returned to Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam Friday, July 15, after completing a scheduled six-month deployment in which they split their time between the U.S. Central Command area and the Western Pacific region.

USS La Jolla’s commanding officer, Cmdr. Jeff Bernard, commented that this was the first deployment for about two-thirds of the crew and they performed extremely well.

“The crew was very excited to finally be out of the shipyard and at sea conducting operational tasking,” said Bernard. “The enthusiasm level remained high from the beginning of the deployment until we moored here, today.”

The crew, according to Bernard, conducted many training exercises and qualifications as well as several port visits including Goa, India, and Singapore. “The highlight of this deployment was the operations we conducted and the port visits that we experienced,” said Bernard. “We are very proud to represent the Navy and the submarine force overseas throughout the Western Pacific.”

USS La Jolla is named for La Jolla, California, and is the first warship named after this township. Commissioned on 24 October 1981, La Jolla is the fourteenth ship of the Los Angeles-class of nuclear attack submarines, is 360-feet long and displaces 6,900 tons. The submarine can be armed with sophisticated Mark-48 ADCAP anti-submarine torpedoes and Tomahawk guided cruise missiles.