US submarine docks in Subic Bay

MANILA, Philippines - A submarine of the United States Navy arrived in Subic Bay in Zambales on Saturday.

The US embassy confirmed the visit of USS Tucson (SSN-770) in a press statement issued yesterday. 

“The Los Angeles-class fast-attack submarine with a crew of 150 sailors arrived…as part of its Indo-Asia-Pacific deployment,” the statement read.

Lt. Junior Grade Jimmy Dinh, USS Tucson public affairs officer, said some of the submarine’s crew members are Filipino-Americans.

Homeported at Pearl Harbor, the Tucson, with 12 vertical launch tubes for Tomahawk cruise missiles and four torpedo tubes, is a high-endurance submarine with advanced stealth capabilities.

USS Tucson’s docking in Subic Bay comes on the heels of China’s announcement that it will construct a fourth airfield in the West Philippine Sea.

With a length of 360 feet, the Tucson can support anti-submarine warfare, anti-surface ship warfare as well as  strike, intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance missions.