General Dynamics NASSCO Launches USNS Wally Schirra

General Dynamics NASSCO, a wholly owned subsidiary of General Dynamics, yesterday launched the U.S. Navy's newest supply ship, USNS Wally Schirra (T-AKE 8), during a christening ceremony at the shipyard. The ship is named in honor of the fifth American launched into space, Navy Captain Walter M. "Wally" Schirra, Jr.

The senior Navy astronaut on active duty, Captain Lee Morin, M.D., Ph.D., was the ceremony's principal speaker.

Mrs. Josephine Schirra, the widow of Wally Schirra and the ship's sponsor, christened the ship by breaking the traditional bottle of champagne against the bow before the 689-foot-long ship slid into San Diego Bay.

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