COMMISSIONED AT PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA
The patrol coastal ship Thunderbolt (PC 12) will be commissioned at 11 a.m. on
Saturday, October 7, 1995, at Penn's Landing, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
Mr. Wade R. Sanders, Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Navy for Reserve
Affairs, will be the ceremony's principal speaker. Jane Spratt, the ship's
sponsor, will attend the ceremony. Also attending will be the Honorable Ed
Rendell, Mayor of Philadelphia; Rear Admiral Raymond C. Smith, Jr., Commander,
Special Warfare Command; and Major General James C. McCombs, U.S. Air Force,
Director of Resources, U.S. Special Operations Command.
Thunderbolt is the 12th of 13 Cyclone Class patrol ships authorized by
Congress. Named for a weather element, the ship's primary mission is coastal
patrol and interdiction surveillance, an important aspect of littoral
operations outlined in the Navy's strategy, "Forward...From the Sea." The ship
will also provide full mission support for Navy SEALs and other special
operations forces.
Patrol coastal ships are armed with a Stinger missile station, 40mm grenade
launchers, .50 caliber machine guns and 25mm chain guns. Thunderbolt has a
crew of four officers and 24 Sailors, is 170 feet in length, has a beam of 24
feet, and displaces approximately 331 tons fully loaded. Lieutenant Commander
Brad Williamson, USN, from Levittown, Pennsylvania, will be the ship's
commanding officer.
Media wishing to attend the ceremony should contact Lieutenant Commander Jim
Fallin or Lieutenant Commander Ken Braithwaite at the Command Information
Bureau established on the cruiser Olympia at Penn's Landing, (215)
922-6265/1898.
