Malta Native Completes Successful Tour as Commanding Officer of USS Oregon

Cmdr. Lacy N. Lodmell, turned command of USS Oregon (SSN 793) over to Cmdr. John H. Ross in a traditional change of command ceremony held Friday, April 14, pierside at Naval Submarine Base New London in Groton, Connecticut.

USS Oregon is a Virginia-class fast-attack submarine commissioned under Lodmell just less than a year ago, in May of 2022. Lodmell – a native of Malta, Montana, and 1997 graduate of Malta High School – took command in November of 2020.

"It has been the absolute highlight of my career to serve alongside this fantastic crew and see them complete new construction, commission the ship, and finally certify and deploy to the European Command. The ship is an absolute marvel and the backbone of America's undersea dominance, but it is this crew that is the heart of the ship and the best our nation can offer," said Lodmell, who received a bachelor of science in mechanical engineering from the University of Idaho in 2003.

"I will be forever grateful to our families, loved ones, and supporters who have made it possible for us to repeatedly take on challenges and operate at a high tempo at sea," he continued. "To my family and the families of USS Oregon, I can never thank you enough. I know Cmdr. Ross is the right man to lead Oregon to even greater heights in the future, and I look forward to seeing all he will accomplish with this amazing team."

Ross – a native of Prairie Village, Kansas, and 1995 graduate of Shawnee Mission East High School – arrives at USS Oregon after sea tours aboard the Los Angeles-class fast-attack submarine USS Pittsburgh (SSN 720) and ballistic-missile submarine USS Nevada (SSBN 733) Blue Crew, as well as executive officer of the pre-commissioning unit for the then-future Virginia-class fast-attack submarine USS Delaware (SSN 791).

Following his Oregon command tour, Lodmell is transitioning to serve as the senior deputy commander of Submarine Squadron 11 in San Diego, California.

"I am extremely grateful for the opportunity I have had to get to know this crew during my turnover. I've been inspired by their work ethic and deep commitment to excellence," said Ross. "I appreciate the warfighting culture that Cmdr. Lodmell has established aboard USS Oregon and absolutely promise to give my very best as we build on that tremendous foundation and execute any mission our nation gives us. I am excited and humbled to get to work as the commanding officer of Oregon."

Ross went on to receive post-secondary education at Pennsylvania State University and continued on to the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania.

The guest speaker at the event was U.S. Navy Capt. (ret.) Brian Humm, former commanding officer of the Los Angeles-class USS Buffalo (SSN 715) and guided-missile submarine USS Ohio (SSGN 726) Blue Crew, as well as former commander of Submarine Squadron (SUBRON) 19. Capt. Jason Grizzle, the commander of SUBRON 4, under which USS Oregon operates, served as the presiding officer at the ceremony.

USS Oregon was the 20th Virginia-class submarine built, as well as the second Block IV Virginia-class sub. Block IV Virginia-class submarines incorporate design changes focused on reduced total ownership cost. By making these smaller-scale design changes to increase the component-level lifecycle of the submarine, the Navy will increase the periodicity between depot maintenance availabilities and increase the number of deployments.

Blocks I-III Virginia-class submarines are planned to undergo four depot maintenance availabilities and conduct 14 deployments. Block IV design changes are intended to reduce planned availabilities by one to three, and increase deployments to 15.

SSN 793 is the third U.S. Navy ship launched to bear the name Oregon, but first in more than a century. The first, named after the Oregon Territory before Oregon became a state, was a brigantine in service from 1841-1845. The second was an Indiana-class battleship commissioned in 1896 and ultimately decommissioned for the final time in 1919.

Fast-attack submarines are multi-mission platforms enabling five of the six Navy maritime strategy core capabilities – sea control, power projection, forward presence, maritime security and deterrence. They are designed to excel in anti-submarine warfare, anti-ship warfare, strike warfare, special operations, intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance, irregular warfare and mine warfare. Fast-attack submarines project power ashore with special operations forces and Tomahawk cruise missiles in the prevention or response to regional crises.