November 3, 2000

SMU GRADUATE TAKES COMMAND OF FAMOUS NAVY SUBMARINE

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DALLAS (SMU) -- An SMU graduate has taken command of one of the U.S. Navy's most famous submarines.

Cmdr. Charles Sykora, a 1982 graduate of the SMU School of Engineering, took command of the USS Dallas today in a ceremony in Groton, Conn. The Dallas is the submarine featured in Tom Clancy's bestselling novel, The Hunt for Red October.

Sykora joined the Navy in 1983 and has held positions on six submarines before being named commanding officer of the Dallas.

The USS Dallas was christened by former Texas First Lady Rita Crocker Clements on July 18, 1981. It has a crew of 13 officers and 121 enlisted men. The Dallas is one of 51 Los Angeles class submarines in the Navy's fleet of nuclear-powered fast attack submarines. The primary mission of the Dallas is to deploy units of Navy SEALs for special warfare assignments. The sub is deployed for six months every two years, usually to the Mediterranean Sea or the Persian Gulf. Sykora's first deployment will begin in April 2002.

Sykora credits the classes he took at the SMU School of Engineering with helping him make it through the Navy's Nuclear Power School, which he described as being "very engineering-intensive."

Sykora says the Dallas deserves the great reputation it has, noting that the ship earned its squadron's "Battle E" award last year for efficiency. He hopes the sub will win the award again this year under his command.

"It is a delight to come to a sub with this reputation," Sykora said in an interview from on board the submarine.

Lt. Scott Miller, a Navy public affairs officer, said he does not know if this is the first time a submarine has been commanded by a person from the town the sub is named for, but he said it is "certainly a unique situation."

Also unusual is the fact that Sykora's younger brother, Randall (Craig) Sykora, is second in command of the USS Maryland, a ballistic missile submarine based in Kings Bay, Ga. Craig Sykora graduated from SMU in 1985 with a degree in electrical engineering. The Sykoras are one of only two pairs of brothers who serve as officers in the Navy's submarine force. The Sykoras served together as junior officers on the USS Tennessee.

Charles Sykora said he is optimistic his brother will also make commanding officer soon.

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