USS Archerfish (SSN-678), a Sturgeon-classattack submarine, was the second ship of the United States Navy to be named for thearcherfish, a family (Toxotidae) of fish notable for their habit of preying on insects and other animals by shooting them down with squirts of water from the mouth. The contract to build Archerfishwas awarded on 25 June 1968 and her keel was laid down on 19 June 1969 atGroton,Connecticut, by the Electric BoatDivision of theGeneral DynamicsCorporation. She was launched on 16 January 1971, sponsored by Miss Mary Conover Warner, and commissioned at her home port, New London, Connecticut, on 17 December 1971 with Commander Ralph Gordon Bird in command.
From 5 to 15 June 1972, Archerfish participated in North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) Exercise "Pink Lace" in the mid-Atlantic Ocean. In August 1972, she took part in Antisubmarine WarfareExercise 1–73. On 5 September 1972, she began post-shakedown repairs and alterations in the Electric Boat Division shipyard at Groton, where she received extensive modifications and new equipment. She left the shipyard on 26 October and spent the rest of 1972 in local operations and preparation for her first overseeas deployment.
Archerfish continued operations from New London into early 1981. During 1981 and 1982, she alternated two spring deployments to the Mediterranean Sea with normal operations out of New London during the autumn and winter. In February 1983, she began a regular overhaul at the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard at Kittery, Maine. The extended repair period lasted until October 1984 at which time she resumed duty out of New London, Connecticut. Those operations included a North Atlantic deployment in 1985 and a deployment to the polar icecap in 1986, where she met up with USS Hawkbill (SSN-666) and USS Ray (SSN-653) to join in the first tri-submarine surfacing at the North Pole. Archerfish continued local operations until summer 1987, when she was deployed to the Mediterranean Sea. Her next major deployment was in 1988 when she participated in under ice operations at theNorth Pole. In September 1988, Archerfish sailed to Puget Sound, Washington where she was drydocked and overhauled. Here she was fitted with a Dry Deck Shelter. After overhaul she did fourMediterranean Sea deployments from 1992–1997.
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