The official party salutes during a decommissioning ceremony for the Los Angeles-class fast attack submarine USS Chicago (SSN 721), in Keyport, Wash., Friday, July 21, 2023. Chicago was commissioned in 1986 and is the fourth vessel to be named after Chicago, Ill. (Brian G. Reynolds/U.S. Navy)

The Windy City’s fourth namesake submarine was decommissioned last week after 36 years of service.

The decommissioning ceremony for Los Angeles-class fast-attack submarine USS Chicago took place Friday, July 21, at the U.S. Naval Undersea Museum in Keyport, Wash. Rear Adm. Nicholas Tilbrook, commander of Submarine Group 9 and former commanding officer of Chicago, and retired Vice Adm. Stanley Szemborski, another former commanding officer of the submarine, spoke at the ceremony honoring past and present crewmembers.

The Los Angeles-class fast-attack submarine USS Chicago (SSN 721) gets under way from Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam, Jan. 8, 2023. Chicago, the fourth U.S. Navy ship to be named for the Illinois city, began the inactivation and decommissioning process at Puget Sound Naval Shipyard after 36 years of service. (Scott Barnes/U.S. Navy)

“For [36] years Chicago consistently demonstrated to our competitors her versatility and effectiveness in a wide range of military profiles, including anti-submarine warfare, surface warfare, intelligence gathering and reconnaissance,” Cmdr. Robert Gillis, Chicago’s final commanding officer, said during the ceremony.

Commissioned Sept. 27, 1986, at Naval Station Norfolk in Virginia, the submarine’s unit awards include a Navy Unit Commendation and five Meritorious Unit Commendations for outstanding performance during deployed operations, according to a Navy news release. It was the fourth U.S. Navy vessel to bear the name Chicago, and the 34th Los Angeles-class nuclear-powered fast-attack submarine, according to a Navy fact sheet.

Cmdr. Robert Gillis, the final commanding officer of the Los Angeles-class fast attack submarine USS Chicago (SSN 721), passes through sideboys during a decommissioning ceremony for the submarine. (Brian G. Reynolds/U.S. Navy)

The color guard parades the colors during a decommissioning ceremony for the Los Angeles-class fast attack submarine USS Chicago (SSN 721). (Brian G. Reynolds/U.S. Navy)