Groton — Perhaps the most well-known submarine to the public is being retired.

The USS Dallas (SSN 700), made famous by Tom Clancy's nuclear-submarine thriller "The Hunt for Red October," returned to Groton on Tuesday after a more than seven-month deployment to the Middle East, likely its last overseas deployment.

Navy officials did not give a reason for the extended length of the boat's deployment, which usually span six months. But those waiting on the pier at the Naval Submarine Base seemed to care only about its timing: that the 132 sailors were back for Thanksgiving.

Seaman Michael Phillips' family — including his wife, Emmalee; father, Joe, an Army Gulf War veteran; mother, Michelle; and sister Siera, who traveled from Sicklerville, N.J. — were looking forward to spending the holiday, his favorite, with him.

Phillips and his wife were newlyweds and their son was just 4 months old when he deployed, his wife said while holding a bundled-up Michael Jr., who is now 11 months old.

In emails to his mother and his wife, Phillips expressed excitement at getting to see so many different countries while on deployment.

The boat traveled more than 42,000 miles and made stops in Duqm, Oman; Jebel Ali, United Arab Emirates; Manama, Bahrain; Faslane, Scotland, and Toulon, France. Most recently, they visited Toulon, which didn't help acclimate them to the bitter New England temperatures that greeted them Tuesday, Capt. Jack Houdeshell joked.

Houdeshell, Dallas' commanding officer, said 23 sailors and eight officers were promoted during the deployment.

The Dallas will undergo routine maintenance after its standard 30-day post-deployment stand down, and eventually will shift its homeport to Bremerton, Wash., to prepare for its decommissioning.

The boat, which has been in service for 35 years, was scheduled to be decommissioned sooner, but the Navy in 2014 extended its service life and retired the USS Norfolk instead to save $10 million.

Clancy's book and the subsequent movie brought fandom to USS Dallas (the submarine Houston actually starred as Dallas), but the movie also brought fame to Waterford-based Sonalysts Inc., which provided Academy Award-winning sound effects for the film.

But Dallas' crew, past and present, likely will remember the boat for reasons unknown to the public.

Al Atkinson, known to many as "Big Al," has served on five submarines, including the James Monroe, which he helped to decommission.

"It's sad because that's been your home for two to three years. You've taken care of her," said Atkinson, who served as command master chief of the Naval Submarine Support Center. "It's like a piece of you is going away."

Atkinson was there to greet his former crew members Lt. Cmdr. Garth Storz, USS Dallas' executive officer, and Master Chief Tyrus Rock, USS Dallas' chief of the boat, who he anticipated would, along with their families, be bringing pies and other food items to the 30 to 40 sailors who will be working on the boat on Thanksgiving.

Edgar Ostapechem, who served on the Dallas from 2012 to earlier this year, came down from Hyannis, Mass., to greet many of his former fellow crew members, who are like family, he said.

Ostapechem recalled port calls in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, and Lisbon, Portugal, where he spent "most of the time" translating for his fellow crew members. Ostapechem, who is Brazilian, said he became a U.S. citizen in 2006 and joined the Navy in 2010.

j.bergman@theday.com