The USS District of Columbia Commissioning Committee's six foot working model returned to the "waters" of the Navy League of the United States' Sea Air Space 2026 STEM Expo on 19 April. RADM(Ret) Dave Goggins answers questions about the USS District of Columbia Hundreds of students from the DMV stopped by the USS District of Columbia Commissioning Committee booth to learn more about the first warship ever named for the District of Columbia. Dave Goggins and Susan Chiaravalle talk to students and parents about the USS District of Columbia (SSBN-826)--the world's largest, stealthiest, and most advanced submarine Rear Admiral (Ret) Dave Goggins, USS District of Columbia Commissioning Committee Chair, and Committee Member, Captain (Ret) Susan Chiaravalle, shared "fun facts" about the USS District of Columbia while demonstrating how a submarine operates using the model. Dave Goggins explains "neutral buoyancy" to students Dave "operated" the USS District of Columbia by raising and lowering periscopes, achieved neutral buoyancy by moving water between the fore and aft trim tanks, operated the fairwater planes, pointed out the “diesel exhaust” from the diesel engines to discuss the three power sources onboard, and opened and closed missile hatches.
Admiral Goggins prepares for missile launches by opening hatches Nearly everyone's favorite part of the demo was showcasing the mission of the USS District of Columbia by launching her “ballistic missiles” (simulated by nerf darts) on the President’s order (role played by one of the students).
RADM(Ret) Goggins explains the purpose of fairwater planes
In addition to the demo, students and their parents learned a little bit about the USS District of Columbia (SSBN-826), currently under construction in Groton, Connecticut, and the first of 12 Columbia-class ballistic missile submarines being built to replace the aging Ohio Class SSBNs.
Admiral Goggins moves water from the fore to the aft trim tank
For example, at a length of 560 feet and displacing 20,810 tons, the Columbia Class SSBN will be the largest submarine ever built by the United States.
Admiral Dave Goggins provides an overview of submarine operations to students and their parents using the 6' working model of the USS District of Columbia (SSBN-826)
We hope there’s at least one future USS District of Columbia Sailor who stopped by our booth based on the keen interest and insightful questions from students!
Admiral Goggins and Susan Chiaravalle get ready to "return to port" following a successful deployment to STEM Expo 2026!
Nearly 3,000 students and their families spent time with the 30+ exhibitors during the 2026 STEM Expo to participate in interactive workshops and hands-on demonstrations.
Sea Air Space STEM Expo 2026
If you missed this year's STEM Expo, the Navy League announced Sea Air Space STEM Expo 2027 is scheduled for Sunday, 4 April 2027. We hope to see you there!!
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