WASHINGTON (AP) - The U.S. policy banning women from serving on submarines passed quietly into history Thursday morning.
Secretary of Defense Robert Gates notified lawmakers in mid-February that the Navy would be lifting the ban - unless Congress objected.
Navy spokesman Lt. Justin Cole said the deadline for Congress to object passed at midnight without action.
The Navy plans a press conference later Thursday to talk about the new policy that will allow women to serve along side men on submarines.
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The press conference is running late. The press officer and his liaison were last seen in the Torpedo room.
Gives a whole new meaning to the term "depth charge."
