View source for Naval Station Norfolk

{{Short description|United States Navy base in Virginia}}
{{about|the naval station established in 1917 in Norfolk|the historic naval shipyard in Portsmouth|Norfolk Naval Shipyard}}
{{Infobox military installation
| name          = Naval Station Norfolk
| location      = [[Norfolk, Virginia]], [[United States]]
| country       = 
| image         = File:9 Flattops at Norfolk naval base, December 20, 2012.jpg
| caption       = Various destroyers, replenishment oilers, cruisers, submarines, frigates, aircraft carriers and some other ships and an amphibious assault ship in Naval Station Norfolk. Pictured December 20, 2012.
| coordinates   = {{coord|36|56|42|N|76|18|47|W|region:US-VA_type:landmark|display=inline,title}}
| type          = Naval Base
| website       = {{URL|https://cnrma.cnic.navy.mil/Installations/NAVSTA-Norfolk/|Official website}}
| ownership     = {{Flagu|United States}}
| operator      = {{flag|United States Navy}}
| built         = {{Start date|1917|07|04}}
| used          = {{start date|1917}}–present
| occupants     = Commander, [[Navy Region Mid-Atlantic]]<br>Commander, [[Navy Warfare Development Command]]
| current_commander = [[Captain (United States O-6)|CAPT]] Matt Schlarmann
| ensign        = NAVSTA Norfolk patch.png
| partof        = [[Navy Region Mid-Atlantic]]
}}

'''Naval Station Norfolk''' is a [[United States Navy]] base in [[Norfolk, Virginia]], that is the headquarters and home port of the U.S. Navy's [[Fleet Forces Command]]. The installation occupies about {{Convert|4|mi|km}} of waterfront space and {{Convert|11|mi|km}} of pier and wharf space of the [[Hampton Roads]] peninsula known as [[Sewell's Point]].  It is the world's largest naval station, with the largest concentration of U.S. Navy forces through 75 ships alongside 14 piers and with 134 aircraft and 11 aircraft hangars at the adjacently operated [[Chambers Field]].<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://cnic.navy.mil/NorfolkSTA/AboutCNIC/History/index.htm |title=History of Naval Station Norfolk |access-date=2009-05-04 |archive-date=2010-12-06 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101206045655/https://www.cnic.navy.mil/NorfolkSTA/AboutCNIC/History/index.htm |url-status=dead }}</ref> Port Services controls more than 3,100 ships' movements annually as they arrive and depart their berths.

Air Operations conducts over 100,000 flight operations each year, an average of 275 flights per day or one every six minutes. Over 150,000 passengers and 264,000 tons of mail and cargo depart annually on [[Air Mobility Command]] (AMC) aircraft and other AMC-chartered flights from the airfield's AMC Terminal.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web|title = NS Norfolk History|url = https://www.cnic.navy.mil/Regions/cnrma/installations/ns_norfolk/about/history/|website = cnic.navy.mil|access-date = 2015-11-16|archive-date = 2015-11-17|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20151117031224/http://www.cnic.navy.mil/regions/cnrma/installations/ns_norfolk/about/history.html|url-status = live}}</ref>

==History==
[[File:USS Yorktown (CV-5) docked at Naval Station Norfolk, in October 1937.jpg|thumb|Aircraft carrier {{USS|Yorktown|CV-5|6}} docked at then–NOB Norfolk in October 1937.]]
The area where the base is located was the site of the original 1907 [[Jamestown Exposition]].<ref name=":1">{{Cite web |url=https://cnic.navy.mil/regions/cnrma/installations/ns_norfolk/about/history.html |title=Naval Station Norfolk - History |website=CNIC |access-date=23 March 2017 |archive-date=24 March 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170324180740/https://cnic.navy.mil/regions/cnrma/installations/ns_norfolk/about/history.html |url-status=dead }}</ref>

In 1915, the Headquarters of the [[5th Naval District]] was established. In April 1917, shortly after the United States entered [[World War I]], a bill was passed for the purchase of the land, and money was set aside in the amount of $1.6 million for the development of the base. This bill was called the Military Deficiency Appropriation Bill.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Command |first=Joseph M. Judge Curator, Hampton Roads Naval Museum Naval History & Heritage |date=2017-08-29 |title=History of Naval Station Norfolk |url=https://www.militarynews.com/norfolk-navy-flagship/base_information/history-of-naval-station-norfolk/article_68b0ec2f-27a8-58e6-b3bf-d0434c96e3a3.html |access-date=2025-11-12 |website=Military News |language=en}}</ref> When the United States entered World War I, the Navy needed a large operations center on the East Coast, which caused the base to expand very quickly.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Taylor |first=Michael V. |title=Naval Station Norfolk |url=https://encyclopediavirginia.org/entries/naval-station-norfolk/ |access-date=2025-11-12 |website=Encyclopedia Virginia |language=en-US}}</ref> The base established a seaplane airfield in October 1917, and in the following year it was separated and became Naval Air Station Hampton Roads.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Naval Station Norfolk, Virginia |url=https://www.history.navy.mil/content/history/nhhc/browse-by-topic/organization-and-administration/installations/naval-station-norfolk.html |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20250401055024/https://www.history.navy.mil/content/history/nhhc/browse-by-topic/organization-and-administration/installations/naval-station-norfolk.html |archive-date=2025-04-01 |access-date=2025-11-12 |website=www.history.navy.mil |language=en-US}}</ref> The Naval Operating Base (NOB) and other facilities were established. By 1918, there were 34,000 enlisted men at the base.<ref name=":1" /> However, by the war's end, the base was reduced in personnel and put into a "standby mode."<ref>{{Cite news |url=https://militarybases.com/ns-norfolk-naval-base-in-norfolk-va/ |title=NS Norfolk Naval Base in Norfolk, VA |work=Military Bases |access-date=2017-03-24 |language=en-US |archive-date=2017-03-24 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170324182252/https://militarybases.com/ns-norfolk-naval-base-in-norfolk-va/ |url-status=live }}</ref>
[[File:USS New Jersey (BB-62) and USS Missouri (BB-63) at Norfolk in 1954.jpg|thumb|''Iowa''-class battleships {{USS|New Jersey|BB-62|6}} and {{USS|Missouri|BB-63|6}} at NS Norfolk in 1954.]]

When [[World War II]] began in Europe in 1939, the base became more active again. New facilities were built, including new [[runway]]s for [[aircraft]], part of [[Naval Air Station Norfolk]]. It also had ramps built to be used by [[seaplane]]s to be operated by the Navy during the war.<ref name=":1" /> About 400 acres was acquired and, by 1943, the air station had become a central airfield for operations. It trained naval air units for the rest of the war.<ref name=":2">{{Cite web |url=http://www.nsnbg.com/editorial-content/history/ |title=History of Naval Station Norfolk |work=Naval Station Norfolk Base Guide & Telephone Directory |language=en |access-date=2017-03-26 |archive-date=2017-03-12 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170312214524/http://www.nsnbg.com/editorial-content/history/ |url-status=live}}</ref>

In March 1946, the [[Chief of Naval Operations]] ordered the Commandant of the [[5th Naval District]] to place NOB Norfolk and NAS Norfolk as separate installations under the command of Commandant Naval Base, whose title was soon changed to Commander, Navy Region, Mid-Atlantic.<ref name=":3">{{Cite web |url=http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/facility/norfolk.htm |title=Naval Station Norfolk |last=Pike |first=John |website=www.globalsecurity.org |access-date=2017-03-26 |archive-date=2017-05-09 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170509202237/http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/facility/norfolk.htm |url-status=live }}</ref>{{Better source needed|reason=globalsecurity.org is insufficiently reliable ([[WP:GLOBALSECURITY]]).|date=January 2025}}

Following World War II, NOB Norfolk became the primary base of the Atlantic Fleet.  It was one of the largest naval bases in the world.

On 1 January 1953, the name of the naval base was officially changed to Naval Station Norfolk (NS Norfolk), after being known as the NOB.<ref name=":2" />

In 1968, the Naval Air Station was given a major role in [[John F. Kennedy]]'s vision of putting a [[Apollo program|man on the moon]]. The air station became Recovery Control Center Atlantic, which provided command, control, and communications for the ships and aircraft that participated in the recovery operations of [[Apollo 7]].<ref name=":2" />

Due to the end of the [[Cold War]], a [[drawdown (economics)|drawdown]] began in the 1990s, and the Navy began reducing shore installations to help with operating costs. Due to this, the Navy merged the separate Naval Station Norfolk and Naval Air Station Norfolk into a single installation to be called Naval Station Norfolk, which became official on 5 February 1999.<ref name=":2" />

Following the attack on [[USS Cole bombing|USS ''Cole'']] in October 2000 and the [[September 11 attacks|11 September 2001]] terrorist attacks, the base had some major upgrades to its security gates, costing more than $12.5 million.<ref name=":2" />

On 26 January 2017, Naval Station Norfolk celebrated its centennial at the Pennsylvania House, a historical building built for the Jamestown Exposition,<ref>{{Cite news |url=http://pilotonline.com/news/local/history/what-s-in-a-name-pennsylvania-house-norfolk/article_bc377e91-bf4e-577f-8027-ed7fb350e9eb.html |title=What's in a name? {{!}} Pennsylvania House, Norfolk |last=Hansen |first=Louis |work=[[The Virginian-Pilot]] |access-date=2017-03-24 |language=en |archive-date=2017-03-24 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170324174422/http://pilotonline.com/news/local/history/what-s-in-a-name-pennsylvania-house-norfolk/article_bc377e91-bf4e-577f-8027-ed7fb350e9eb.html |url-status=live }}</ref> located on the base.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://cnic.navy.mil/regions/cnrma/installations/ns_norfolk/about/100_anniversary.html |title=Naval Station Norfolk Centennial |website=CNIC |access-date=23 March 2017 |archive-date=24 March 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170324181435/https://cnic.navy.mil/regions/cnrma/installations/ns_norfolk/about/100_anniversary.html |url-status=dead }}</ref>

==Incidents==
On Easter (3 April) in 1988, members of the anti-nuclear group [[Plowshares Movement|Plowshares]] boarded the battleship {{USS|Iowa|BB-61|6}} during a public tour and used hammers and symbolic blood to deface the ship's empty [[Tomahawk (missile family)|Tomahawk missile]] launchers.<ref>{{cite web | url=http://articles.philly.com/1988-04-12/news/26249993_1_female-prisoners-protesters-religion-professor | title=An Activist Nun Trying To Provoke People To Think | website=The Philadelphia Inquirer | access-date=17 April 2015 | archive-date=2016-03-04 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304092252/http://articles.philly.com/1988-04-12/news/26249993_1_female-prisoners-protesters-religion-professor | url-status=dead }}</ref>

On March 24, 2014, [[Norfolk Navy Station shooting|a shooting at NS Norfolk]] resulted in the death of a sailor and a civilian. The shooting occurred around 11:20&nbsp;p.m. EDT aboard {{USS|Mahan|DDG-72|6}}. Security forces shot and killed the civilian who had allegedly shot the sailor aboard the vessel.<ref>{{cite news|agency=Associated Press|title=Family: Military Policeman Was Shooting Victim|url=http://washington.cbslocal.com/2014/03/25/two-dead-in-norfolk-navy-base-shooting/|access-date=25 March 2014|work=CBS Local|date=25 March 2014|archive-date=25 March 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140325133258/http://washington.cbslocal.com/2014/03/25/two-dead-in-norfolk-navy-base-shooting/|url-status=live}}</ref> The base was closed for a short time after the shooting on USS ''Mahan''.<ref>{{cite news|last1=West|first1=Rachel|title=Navy ID's shooter in USS Mahan death|url=http://wavy.com/2014/03/25/two-dead-after-shooting-at-pier-at-naval-station-norfolk/|access-date=25 March 2014|work=WAVY-TV|date=25 March 2014|archive-date=25 March 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140325111807/http://wavy.com/2014/03/25/two-dead-after-shooting-at-pier-at-naval-station-norfolk/|url-status=live}}</ref>

On 26 July 2022, a severe thunderstorm with winds of {{convert|60|mph|kph}} and over caused nine helicopters assigned to Naval Station Norfolk to be damaged. Damaged aircraft include the [[MH-60 Seahawk]] and [[MH-53E Sea Dragon]], according to the Navy.<ref name="2022-07-28_NT">[https://www.navytimes.com/news/your-navy/2022/07/27/nine-navy-helicopters-damaged-in-norfolk-storm/ Nine Navy helicopters damaged in Norfolk storm],  Diana Stancy Correll, NavyTimes, 2022-07-28</ref>

== Operational units ==
Naval Station Norfolk is home port of four [[carrier strike groups]] and their assigned ships. In addition, the Naval Station plays host to several [[Military Sealift Command]] ships, as well as the [[COMSUBLANT#Norfolk, Virginia|submarines of the Atlantic Fleet]].

As of October 2025, the following operational units are headquartered or homeported at Naval Station Norfolk:
{{Div col|small=yes|Content=|colwidth=30em}}

=== Carrier Strike Groups (CARSTRKGRU)===
* [[Carrier Strike Group Two]] 
* [[Carrier Strike Group Eight]]
* [[Carrier Strike Group Ten]]
* [[Carrier Strike Group Twelve]]

=== Destroyer Squadrons (DESRONS)===
* [[Destroyer Squadron 2]]
* [[Destroyer Squadron 22]]
* [[Destroyer Squadron 26]]
* [[Destroyer Squadron 28]]

=== Aircraft carriers ===
* {{USS|Dwight D. Eisenhower|CVN-69}}
* {{USS|John C. Stennis|CVN-74}}
* {{USS|Harry S. Truman|CVN-75}}
* {{USS|George H.W. Bush|CVN-77}}
* {{USS|Gerald R. Ford|CVN-78}}

=== Cruiser ===
* {{USS|Gettysburg|CG-64}}

{{no col break|

=== Amphibious assault === 
* {{USS|Wasp|LHD-1}}
* {{USS|Kearsarge|LHD-3}}
* {{USS|Bataan|LHD-5}}
* {{USS|Iwo Jima|LHD-7}}
* {{USS|San Antonio|LPD-17}}
* {{USS|Mesa Verde|LPD-19}}
* {{USS|New York|LPD-21}}
* {{USS|Arlington|LPD-24}}
* {{USS|Fort Lauderdale|LPD-28}}
}}
{{no col break|

=== Guided missile destroyers ===
*{{USS|Stout|DDG-55}}
*{{USS|Mitscher|DDG-57}}
*{{USS|Laboon|DDG-58}}
*{{USS|Gonzalez|DDG-66}}
*{{USS|Cole|DDG-67}}
*{{USS|Ross|DDG-71}}
*{{USS|Mahan|DDG-72}}
*{{USS|McFaul|DDG-74}}
*{{USS|Porter|DDG-78}}
*{{USS|Oscar Austin|DDG-79}}
*{{USS|Nitze|DDG-94}}
*{{USS|James E. Williams|DDG-95}}
*{{USS|Bainbridge|DDG-96}}
*{{USS|Forrest Sherman|DDG-98}}
*{{USS|Truxtun|DDG-103}}
*{{USS|Gravely|DDG-107}}
}}

=== Military Sealift Command ===
* {{USNS|Comfort|T-AH-20}}
* {{USNS|Lewis and Clark|T-AKE-1}}
* {{USNS|Leroy Grumman|T-AO-195}}
* {{USNS|Kanawha|T-AO-196}}
* {{USNS|Patuxent|T-AO-201}}
* {{USNS|Laramie|T-AO-203}}
* {{USNS|Supply|T-AOE-6}}
* {{USNS|Arctic|T-AOE-8}}
* {{USNS|Zeus|T-ARC-7}}
* {{USNS|Robert F Kennedy|T-AO 208}}
* {{USS|Robert E Simanek|ESB-7}}


{{Div col end}}

=== Submarines ===
As of September 2025 the following operational submarine units and submarines are headquartered respectively homeported at Naval Station Norfolk:

* '''Commander, Submarine Squadron 6''' (CSS 6):<ref>{{cite web |title=Commander Submarine Squadron 6 |url=https://www.sublant.usff.navy.mil/CSS6/ |publisher=Commander, Submarine Force Atlantic |access-date=2 September 2025}}</ref>
** [[Los Angeles-class submarine]]s:
*** {{USS|Pasadena|SSN-752}}
** [[Virginia-class submarine]]s:
*** {{USS|New Hampshire|SSN-778}}
*** {{USS|New Mexico|SSN-779}}
*** {{USS|Oregon|SSN-793}}
*** [[Pre-Commissioning Unit]] (PCU) {{USS|Barb|SSN-804}}

* '''Commander, Submarine Squadron 8''' (CSS 8):<ref>{{cite web |title=Commander Submarine Squadron 8 |url=https://www.sublant.usff.navy.mil/CSS8/ |publisher=Commander, Submarine Force Atlantic |access-date=2 September 2025}}</ref>
** [[Los Angeles-class submarine]]s:
*** {{USS|Columbus|SSN-762}}
*** {{USS|Boise|SSN-764}}
*** {{USS|Montpelier|SSN-765}}
** [[Virginia-class submarine]]s:
*** {{USS|John Warner|SSN-785}}
*** {{USS|Montana|SSN-794}}
*** {{USS|New Jersey|SSN-796}}
*** Pre-Commissioning Unit (PCU) {{USS|Massachusetts|SSN-798}}
*** Pre-Commissioning Unit (PCU) {{USS|Arkansas|SSN-800}}
*** Pre-Commissioning Unit (PCU) {{USS|Oklahoma|SSN-802}}

== Air Squadrons ==
{{Main|Naval Station Norfolk Chambers Field#Tenant Commands}}

==Tenant/Shore Commands==
In addition to the several operational units, Naval Station Norfolk is also headquarters to a number of shore activities that provided administrative and specialty support to regional operational assets, and in some cases, the entire Navy.

As of June 2021, these included:
*[[Navy Warfare Development Command]]
*[[Navy Region Mid-Atlantic]]
*[[Second Fleet|United States Second Fleet]]
*[[Carrier Strike Group Four]]
*Navy Expeditionary Combat Command
*[[Naval Reserve Force]]
*Navy Fleet Readiness Centers
*Naval Surface Force Atlantic
*Naval Computer and Telecommunications Area Master Station Atlantic (NCTAMS LANT)
*[[Navy Exchange|Navy Exchange Command]]
*[[Naval Safety Center]]
*[[Naval Criminal Investigative Service]], Norfolk Field Office headquarters and NCIS Resident Agency (NCISRA) Norfolk, a subordinate component of the Norfolk Field Office.
*[[Commander, Navy Installations Command|Commander Navy Installations Command]], N6 and N8

==Base housing==
There is a public-private venture (PPV) housing by Liberty Military Housing for accompanied service members.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://ffr.cnic.navy.mil/Navy-Housing/Housing-By-Region/Mid-Atlantic/NAVSTA-Norfolk/|title=Welcome to Naval Station Norfolk housing|publisher=[[U.S. Navy]]|accessdate=2023-05-14}}</ref> Some properties are on the property of the base.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.livelmh.com/installations/va/norfolk/naval-station-norfolk/communities|title=Communities Naval Station Norfolk|publisher=Liberty Military Housing|accessdate=2023-05-14}}</ref>

==See also==
*[[Commodore Levy Chapel]]
*[[United States Navy submarine bases]]

==References==
{{USNAVY}}
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
{{Commons category}}
* {{Official website|https://cnrma.cnic.navy.mil/Installations/NAVSTA-Norfolk/}}
* [http://www.flagshipnews.com ''Flagship'' - military-authorized newspaper of NAS Norfolk and Commander Navy Region Mid-Atlantic]
* [http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/facility/norfolk.htm NS Norfolk] at GlobalSecurity.org
* {{FAA-diagram|00290}}
* {{FAA-procedures|NGU}}

{{US-airport-mil|NGU}}

{{US Navy navbox}}
{{VAMilitary}}
{{Norfolk, Virginia}}
{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Naval Stations of the United States Navy]]
[[Category:United States Navy submarine bases|Norfolk]]
[[Category:Installations of the United States Navy in Virginia]]
[[Category:1917 establishments in Virginia]]
[[Category:Military in Norfolk, Virginia]]
[[Category:Military Superfund sites]]
[[Category:Superfund sites in Virginia]]