Thresher Base holds six regular meetings per year on the third Saturday of the months of January, March, May, July. September & November. Additionally, Thresher Base hosts a Memorial Day service at Albacore Park as well as the Annual USS Thresher Memorial Service, held on the Saturday closest to April 10.

Join with your Thresher Base shipmates to help run the Rig for Dive aboard USS Albacore for the Massachusetts Bay Sea Cadets. This unit is commanded by retired Submarine Master Chief Ron Ross. Muster at 0945 on Sunday morning, October 18, 2026.

Joe Afienko, the Albacore's Museum Operations Director and former Submarine Cook, will run the event in the galley area. Help is needed to help the cadets learn about the machinery, and hull penetrations in the bow compartment, control room, and the engine room. A second SubVet will be assigned in Control to describe how a submarine navigates underwater.

To begin, the Sea Cadets will tour the museum focusing on the Submarine displays that includes the history of Submarines, and a battery cell. This will allow an overview of Submarines including the current boats, their purposes and armaments. Then they will proceed to the boat.

For Part 2, Scavenger Hunt, the Sea Cadets will be furnished with a qual card that contains questions about each compartment. They are expected to locate the major equipment in each compartment and understand it's purpose. This is where your help is needed. They are asked to located the hull penetrations and valves that would, if not properly rigged for dive, allow water into the pressure hull. This includes, but is not limited to, the main induction, escape trunks and their drain valves, signal ejectors and their drain valves, shaft(s), main access hatch in the sail, and the main sea water valves. Point out the main ballast tank valves and piping in each compartment. Point out the water tight doors, their ventilation shut off vavles and describe how low pressure air is used to limit flooding.

In Control, point out the XMAS tree, the planes, the main ballast tank valves, and the scope and the gauges and heading indicators locagted in front of the planes. Describe how a submarine navigates underwater.

For part 3, Rig for Dive, the cadets will be divided into four groups, bow compartment, control room, crews mess, and engine room. They will be furnished with a significantly reduced compartment rig for dive bill. Pick two cadets, one to do the initial check, and a second to do the verification. Once completed, report to control that the compartment is rigged for dive.

For part 4, Simulated Dive: In the control room, one cadet will be chosen to be the OOD, a second as the COW, and two other cadets in control will be placed on the planes. Once all compartments have reported rigged for dive, the OOD will conduct the dive procedure.

After the simulated dive is completed, all Cadets and SubVets will assemble along outside of the boat near the bow for a group photo. This photo will be published on Facebook, LinkedIn and newsletters for both the Naval Submarine League and NH Council of the Navy League and will receive national exposure.

Directions to the USS Albacore Museum at 569 Albacore Way can be found via the following link: Directions to USS Albacore Museum, 569 Albacore Way, Portsmouth, NH

Join with your Thresher Base Shipmates at the November Thresher Base USSVI meeting on Saturday, November 21, 2026 @ 1200 at Newick's Lobster House, 431 Dover Point Rd., Dover, NH

Directions to Newick's Lobster House can be found via the following link: Directions to Newick's Lobster House