Allan Rockwell McCann was in charge of the development of a submarine rescue chamber, which bears his name, "The McCann Submarine Rescue Chamber". Additionally he was assigned as Liaison Officer / Engineer when the submarine was converted for use in the under ice attempt to circumnavigate the Arctic Ice cap and voyage to the North Pole. Modifications to the submarine were extensive, and contained innovations of a telescoping conning tower, an ice drill, an incorporated diving bell and an Air Lock, designed by Simon Lake. The submarine was designated "Nautilus" and leased for one dollar to Lake and Danenhower, Inc., of Bridgeport, Connecticut,
Skipjack-class submarine planes were moved to the massive sail to cut down on flow-induced noise near the bow sonar arrays. They were known as sail planes or fairwater planes. The "Skipjack"s were the first class built with sail planes; they were later backfitted on the "Barbel"s. This design feature would be repeated on all U.S. nuclear submarines until the improved , the first of which was launched in 1988. The small "turtleback" behind the sail was the exhaust piping of the auxiliary diesel generator. The "Skipjack"s also introduced the S5W reactor to U.S. nuclear submarines. It was known as ASFR (Advanced Submarine