Peter Igoe – Nuclear Submarine Operations
At our regular Zoom meeting on Wednesday, April 29, Peter Igoe (Tom Igoe’s brother) will lead a discussion on US nuclear submarine operations in the ’60s. This period was a tense time when our country and Russia were engaged as fierce competitors below the surface of the Atlantic.
Peter, who served as a Naval officer on two nuclear boats in that era, will describe operation of the main elements of the submarine’s nuclear propulsion system (including design and management of the reactor on board), the central role of Admiral Hyman Rickover in the development and oversight of strict nuclear safety standards for the US sub fleet, the command structure on board ship, the rules of engagement for a nuclear missile launch, and key advances in nuclear submarine technology that have taken place since the decade of the’60s.
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Peter was born in St. Louis, MO, in the summer of ’42. He attended college at Yale and was accepted into the US Navy “Regular” ROTC program. Peter graduated in 1964 from Yale with an AB in economics and was commissioned as an Ensign in the Regular Navy with a 5-year active duty commitment. He was immediately accepted into the US Navy nuclear submarine program and, after 18 months of training, served on two boats, the USS John Adams, SSBN 620 (5 Polaris patrols), and the USS Haddo, SSN 603 (special operations).
Following his service in the Navy, Peter obtained an MBA in finance from Stamford and went to work for Xerox, becoming Senior Vice President and CFO of Xerox Publications/Field Publications. Thereafter, he held the position of VP, Worldwide Operations, for Rodale Press.
Peter is married, with 3 children, 5 grandchildren and an 8-week old yellow lab who arrives home on May 2. He and his wife Ruth reside in Amelia Island, FL, and have a summer place on Beaver Island, in northern Lake Michigan.
Here is his presentation: Submarine Igoe