Navy names its newest submarine in honor of Atlanta

ATLANTA — A high honor today for the city of Atlanta, soon to be on the high seas. The navy has named it’s latest nuclear-powered attack submarine and it will be called the USS Atlanta.

“This is the actual diameter of the submarine he was in,” Josh Carter said during a museum tour.

He says his beloved grandfather is very proud. “It’s an amazing honor, and it is great to do it “here,” Carter told Channel 2′s Berndt Petersen.

“It is my honor here today to name the next Virginia-class attack submarine the USS Atlanta,” Secretary of the Navy Carlos Del Toro said.

This will be the sixth navy vessel to bear the city’s name, which included a cruiser that saw action during World War II, making the nation proud.

“It feels good to say that. Feels good to be a city that doesn’t have a beach, but we get a submarine y’all,” Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens said.

It’s the second submarine. There is another named in honor of Josh Carter’s beloved grandfather, Jimmy Carter. The former president himself, back in the 1940s ′s and ‘50s, served his country with honor aboard those boats.

“Having USS Jimmy Carter and now the USS Atlanta as a submarine is just perfect,” Carter said.

The new submarine should be Christened by the year 2030.