In formation, the group stood impatiently, ready for the order that would let them break ranks and get onto the pier.
First, though, the USS San Juan had to tie up at the pier. Only then could the lucky bride tapped for the First Kiss leave behind the sailors' friends and relatives held back by high fences and armed security.
Aisling Hatch, of Boston, embraced her husband Tad, a sonar technician on the San Juan. Before they were finished with the kiss, the McCoy family assembled for the First Hug.
"You're killing me," Michael McCoy, a chief electrician's mate, joked as his 9-year-old daughter Katelyn squeezed him for all she was worth.
Finally, Capt. Dennis McKelvey gave the order: "Open the gate!"
In flooded the families, many of whom hadn't seen their loved ones in six months.
"It means I don't have to make all the decisions by myself anymore," said Joan Reeder, whose husband James was willing to share the load.
"It was actually our fifth year anniversary just a couple days ago," he said, "so have to celebrate a little belated."
The USS San Juan, a fast-attack submarine, spent six months in the Mediterranean, the Indian Ocean, and at Simonstown, South Africa. On Wednesday, the USS Miami returns to Groton, in another homecoming.
