Original vintage 1960s Avco Corporation advertisement for the company's Crosley Division amplifiers used in U.S. Navy submarine fire-control system. The SSN-578 Skate was the third USN submarine named for the skate, a type of ray, and was the lead ship of the Skate class of nuclear submarines. She was the third nuclear submarine commissioned, the first to make a completely submerged trans-Atlantic crossing, the second submarine to reach the North Pole, and the first to surface there.
Dimensions: Approx. 5.75 inches wide by 8.75 inches high.
The USN SSN-578 Skate
The Skate class was the first class of nuclear-powered attack submarines after two prototypes, USS Nautilus and USS Seawolf. USS Skate was commissioned on 23 December 1957 – after a shakedown training off New London up to 29 January 1958, she went to Bermuda and back to her home port on 8 February to depart on the 24th for Portland, England, stopping in France and the Netherlands.
First Visit to North Pole
On 30 July, Skate sought the Arctic where she operated under the ice for 10 days. During this time, she surfaced nine times through the ice, navigated over 2,400 miles (3,900 km) under it, and on 11 August, 9:47 pm EDT (the week after USS Nautilus) became the second sea ship to reach the North Pole. Skate was unable to surface precisely at the Pole on the August voyage due to dangerous ice conditions as noted in the captain's 1960 book, “Surface at the Pole: The Extraordinary Voyages of the USS Skate,” where Calvert said, "Seldom had the ice seemed so heavy and so thick as it did in the immediate vicinity of the pole. For days we had searched in vain for a suitable opening to surface in."
After being denied access to visit Copenhagen in Denmark, she sailed into Bergen, Norway on August 23rd. There she was inspected by King Olav V of Norway, U.S. Ambassador Frances E. Willis, and Minister of Defense Nils Handal. The submarine made port calls in the Netherlands, Belgium, and France before returning to New London in September 1958. In recognition of the dangerous and historic feat, the Skate and its crew were given the Navy Unit Commendation award for "... braving the hazards of the polar ice pack...."
Second Visit to North Pole
While the Skate was unable to surface on its first voyage to the pole, in March 1959, she became the first submarine to surface at the North Pole. Calvert described the historic moment in his book, saying, "Slowly we blew the tanks and the Skate moved reluctantly upward. It was apparent we were under heavier ice here than any we had experienced before."
While at the pole, Calvert and the crew planted an American flag in a cairn they built out of ice blocks, and put a waterproof container in the cairn with a note commemorating the event. The crew also held a ceremony for the late Arctic explorer Sir Hubert Wilkins and committed his ashes at the pole. In 1931, Sir Hubert had conducted an Arctic expedition in the disarmed research submarine Nautilus (ex-USS O-12).
After reaching the Pole, the Skate continued its mission to pioneer arctic operations during periods of extreme cold and maximum ice thickness. When the submarine returned to port, she was awarded a bronze star in lieu of a second Navy Unit Commendation for demonstrating "for the first time the ability of submarines to operate in and under the Arctic ice in the dead of winter." In the fall of 1959 and in 1960, Skate participated in exercises designed to strengthen American antisubmarine defenses.
Third Visit to North Pole
On 7 July 1962, Skate again set course towards the North Pole. Five days later, USS Seadragon, did likewise from Pearl Harbor. The two submarines made their rendezvous in late July. After meeting, they operated together for over a week. Both submarines surfaced at the North Pole in early August and official greetings and insignia of Submarine Force Atlantic Fleet and Submarine Force Pacific Fleet were exchanged.
Later Years
Skate returned to New London and performed fleet and local operations for the next several years. She entered the Norfolk Naval Shipyard in late April 1965, the first nuclear submarine overhauled there, for nuclear refueling and installation of the SUBSAFE package. Skate was the first submarine to finish this major conversion program, which was instituted after the loss of USS Thresher in 1963.
The remainder of her at sea time was spent in various Atlantic Fleet and NATO exercises. In July 1971, she began her third regular overhaul at the Norfolk Naval Shipyard and did not return to New London until mid-November 1973. In August 1974, Skate operated as a unit of the Atlantic Fleet. In late 1977, Skate transferred to Pearl Harbor, where she joined the other three Skate-class submarines as a member of Submarine Squadron 7, and was decommissioned in September 1986.
The Avco Corporation
Located in Wilmington, Massachusetts, Avco Manufacturing was the third-largest US producer of World War II materials. It became the Avco Corporation in 1959.
Avco Corporation was a US-based company that operated in the aerospace and defense industries. They manufactured aircraft engines, sensor systems, and other products to include air-launched weapons, battlefield munitions and submunitions, and ground and airborne surveillance systems. It also specialized in vehicle protection and radiation detection systems, as well as aircraft engines.
Of note, Avco was involved in the Apollo space program and the development of ICBMs, and played a major role in the legendary Apollo missions of the 1960s and early 1970s. NASA chose Avco to design and install the heat shield, and the defense company pioneered the heat-resistant material that charred to form a protective coating and block the heat from penetrating the space capsule. It also developed Chartek fire-retardant material for the Apollo spacesuit, which delayed the suit's temperature build-up during a fire and could swell to six times its thickness to create a protective barrier.
In 1985, Textron acquired Avco, which nearly doubled in size with the acquisition, transitioned the business to Textron Defense Systems which evolved into today’s Textron Systems Weapons & Sensor Systems. A leader in intelligence-gathering capabilities and advanced protection systems necessary for mission success, Weapons and Sensor Systems continues to provide these heat resistant materials—the thermal protection material of choice for the current NASA Orion Crew Exploration vehicle program.
Avco operates in the defense and aerospace industry, manufacturing air-launched weapons, submunitions, battlefield munitions and sensor systems, and ground and airborne surveillance systems. It also specializes in vehicle protections and radiation detection systems, as well as aircraft engines.