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The Los Angeles-class fast-attack submarine USS Houston departs Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam, Hawaii, for the final time, Monday, June 6, 2016. Houston is en route to Bremerton, Wash., for decommissioning after 33 years of service.

The Los Angeles-class fast-attack submarine USS Houston departs Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam, Hawaii, for the final time, Monday, June 6, 2016. Houston is en route to Bremerton, Wash., for decommissioning after 33 years of service. (Michael Lee/U.S. Navy)

The Los Angeles-class fast-attack submarine USS Houston departs Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam, Hawaii, for the final time, Monday, June 6, 2016. Houston is en route to Bremerton, Wash., for decommissioning after 33 years of service.

The Los Angeles-class fast-attack submarine USS Houston departs Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam, Hawaii, for the final time, Monday, June 6, 2016. Houston is en route to Bremerton, Wash., for decommissioning after 33 years of service. (Michael Lee/U.S. Navy)

The Los Angeles-class fast-attack submarine USS Houston approaches the submarine tender USS Frank Cable in Malaysia in 2011. Houston will be decommissioned this year after more than 30 years of service.

The Los Angeles-class fast-attack submarine USS Houston approaches the submarine tender USS Frank Cable in Malaysia in 2011. Houston will be decommissioned this year after more than 30 years of service. (Catherine Bland/U.S. Navy)

Sailors, submarine veterans, and friends and families of the USS Houston crew bid farewell to the Los Angeles-class fast-attack submarine Monday after more than 30 years of Navy service.

“It is a celebration of our time in Pearl Harbor,” Cmdr. Scott McGinnis, Houston’s commander, said during a ceremony at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam, Hawaii. “You can see the energy and amount of people here who are just happy to be a part of the Houston family and celebrate the success.”

Houston — the fourth Navy ship to be christened after the Texas city — is on its way to Bremerton, Wash., where it is scheduled for decommission on Aug. 26, a Navy statement said.

The 362-foot-long sub, which can be fitted with Mark-48 torpedoes and Tomahawk cruise missiles, was commissioned Sept. 25, 1982. The vessel recently served as a training platform for 46 submariners across five boats and hosted command courses for prospective commanding officers, the statement said.

“The Houston is going to be sending off some outstanding sailors,” Paul R. McCrory, chief of the boat, said in the statement. “Everybody has put their best foot forward. We’ve come through so much with the age of this ship, it’s really hard to maintain after 33 years of active service. It’s been special to watch the guys take advantage of being a part of what’s going to be history.”

The base hosted a decommissioning ceremony for another Los Angeles-class fast-attack sub, the USS City of Corpus Christi, on Memorial Day. Corpus Christi, the first of its type to deploy to the Pacific Fleet, was inactivated after 35 years.

kidd.aaron@stripes.com

Twitter: @kiddaaron

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