The crew of the submarine USS Mississippi races through the gather crowd to "man" the ship Saturday during commissioning ceremony at the Port of Pascagoula.
Thousands turned out to welcome the new submarine into the Navy -- so many that a traffic jam on the route to the commissioning site at the Port of Pascagoula led officials to delay the event for about a half hour to allow everyone to arrive.
Excitement among the gathered spectators was palpable, and following the ceremony some had tears in their eyes as they watched the crew of the Mississippi stand atop it with the midday sun shining down on them.
Mabus, a former Mississippi governor, placed the sub in service at 11:28 a.m. He told reporters he was particularly pleased with the Mississippi, which officials called the most technologically advanced submarine ever built.
He said it's one of the key pieces in the effort to rebuild the Navy fleet, which will have about 300 ships by the end of the decade. The new sub will sail the world emblazoned with the state's motto, "virtute et armis" -- by valor and arms.
"This is the best submarine in the world," Mabus said.
Gov. Phil Bryant, the son of a World War II Navy veteran, said attending the commissioning of the sub named for his state was the "highest honor" of his career. The governor drew a parallel be
tween the submarine and the resiliency of the people of Mississippi, who he said have rebounded from many trials throughout the state's history.
"You can be certain that just as it dives, this great ship will rise," Bryant said. "Mississippi rises each time the waters go around us and when we seem to be forever lost, there is that moment of truth when we have a choice -- stay down or rise. Ladies and gentlemen, Mississippians always choose to rise. The Mississippi will do the same."
U.S. Sen. Roger Wicker called the Mississippi a "mighty submarine that bears a mighty proud name" and noted it was appropriate it was finished a year ahead of schedule to be ready for combat.
"Mississippians have always been early to step forward in the service of their country," Wicker said.
U.S. Rep. Steven Palazzo said the ship bears the name of a state whose people have gone to war in high numbers, but also supported the war efforts from home through their work in the shipbuilding and defense industries. He lauded the work that produced the USS Mississippi.
"This submarine before us today truly embodies American exceptionalism," Palazzo said.
U.S. Navy Capt. John McGrath, a native of Neptune N.J., is the Mississippi's commanding officer. Its sponsor is Allison Stiller, deputy assistant secretary of the U.S. Navy for ships. Three Mississippi natives are on the ship's crew -- Petty Officer 1st Class Joshua Bordelon of Pascagoula, Petty Officer 1st Class Chadwick Spradling of Byhalia and Seaman Devin Williams of Liberty.
Construction on the USS Mississippi, which is the ninth in the Virginia class, began in February 2007. General Dynamics Electric Boat in Groton, Conn., and Newport News Shipbuilding, a Virginia-based division of Huntington Ingalls, are building the new Virginia-class subs for the Navy.
The Mississippi was christened in Groton, Conn., in December, where it will be based for the immediate future.
"We wish for you fair winds and following seas wherever you sail," U.S. Sen. Thad Cochran said.
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