Laura Bush to Christen Texas Submarine

The christening ceremony for the Virginia-class submarine Texas (SSN 775) will take place at Northrop Grumman Corporation's Newport News sector on Saturday, July 31. Laura Bush, First Lady of the United States, is the ship's sponsor and will christen the ship named for her native state. U.S. Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison(R-TX), will be the keynote speaker for the ceremony. This ceremony marks the first submarine christening at Newport News in more than nine years since the company christened the final Los Angeles-class submarine, Cheyenne. Ceremony participants will include Northrop Grumman Newport News President Tom Schievelbein; Secretary of the Navy Gordon England; members of Virginia's congressional delegation; U.S. Navy Admiral and Director of Naval Reactors Frank "Skip" Bowman; Vice Admiral Kirk H. Donald, U.S. Navy; and Electric Boat President John Casey. Invited guests will include Newport News and Electric Boat employees who are building Texas and their families, the pre-commissioning unit of the Texas and their families, U.S. Navy personnel, and government officials. Named for the lone-star state, Texas is the second ship of the Virginia class and one of the first warships designed for the post-Cold War environment. With improved stealth, sophisticated surveillance capabilities and special warfare enhancements, it will provide undersea supremacy well into the 21st century. The keel for Texas was laid on July 12, 2002 and it is schedule to be delivered to the Navy in 2005. Northrop Grumman Newport News is teamed with General Dynamics Electric Boat to build the first 10 ships of the Virginia class.