USS Illinois successfully undocks at Pearl Harbor Naval Shipyard

PEARL HARBOR, Hawaii – Pearl Harbor Naval Shipyard and Intermediate Maintenance Facility (PHNSY & IMF) successfully undocked Virginia-class fast-attack submarine USS Illinois (SSN 786), June 24, 2026, completing an important milestone in the submarine’s scheduled lifecycle maintenance period.

Undocking signifies the completion of major hull and foundational work, shifting the project's focus toward final testing and certification, and bringing the submarine one step closer to returning to its mission in maintaining national security. Undocking is a 10- to 12-hour engineering and seamanship evolution of flooding the dry dock, carefully removing the massive structural gates, and using tugboats to guide the submarine into open water.The process requires close coordination between the submarine crew, shipyard engineering department, docking team, and tugboats to safely transition the vessel back into the water.

“Safely undocking Illinois - or any submarine - comes down to the hard work of the shipyard workforce,” said U.S. Navy Capt. Ryan McCrillis, commander of PHNSY & IMF. “Executing this undocking so soon after finishing maintenance on another submarine is a massive achievement, especially as we transition straight into the next major shipyard milestones on our horizon. It’s a total team effort, and everyone is pulling their weight to keep our momentum going and get these subs back to the fleet.”

While the submarine was in dry dock, the project team implemented several innovative work-sequencing and pre-testing strategies, front-loading key milestones to significantly speed up the final pier-side certification process, the “end game” of a submarine maintenance availability.

“By maximizing productivity and testing in dry dock, the project is on track to complete the shortest end game that the shipyard has performed to date,” PHNSY & IMF Illinois Project Supervisor Gilbert Gould said. “The ‘do things differently’ attitude of the integrated project team enabled the accomplishment of multiple first-time initiatives in order to complete this portion of Illinois’ maintenance availability.”

With the submarine now back in the water, the crew of Illinois is actively preparing for the next phases of its training and return to operational tasking.

“Undocking is a key step to getting Illinois back to the operational fleet, where she can achieve her ultimate purpose: defend the nation and preserve the American way of life,” said Illinois Commanding Officer Cmdr. Jeffrey Vandenengel. “By completing the required work in the drydock and getting the ship back into the water, Illinois' officers and crew and Pearl Harbor Naval Shipyard have done a great service for the Navy and the nation."

Illinois was commissioned Oct. 29, 2016. Illinois is the second U.S. Navy ship to be named for the state of Illinois and the 13th Virginia-class submarine. Illinois is homeported in Pearl Harbor and assigned to Submarine Squadron 1. It can support various missions, including anti-submarine warfare; anti-surface ship warfare; strike warfare; special operations forces support; and intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance.

PHNSY & IMF’s mission is to keep the Navy’s fleet “Fit to Fight” by repairing, maintaining, and modernizing the Navy's fast-attack submarines and surface ships. Strategically located in the heart of the Pacific, it is the most comprehensive fleet repair and maintenance facility between the U.S. West Coast and the Far East.