The U.S. Navy has announced it is reclassifying its enhanced future Virginia-class boats as guided missile submarines (SSGNs).
In total 19 future Virginia-class submarines will be equipped with the Virginia Payload Module (VPM), an 84-foot, mid-body section with four large-diameter vertical launch tubes. This expanded section will allow them to carry either an additional 28 Tomahawk cruise missiles or other payloads.
Almost all of the Virginia-class boats procured from 2019 — from the second Block V boat onwards — will have the VPM upgrade. The nine Virginia-class submarines ordered last week are Block VII boats. As per a U.S. Navy statement, the first VPM-equipped boat, USS Arizona, is scheduled to be delivered in 2029.
The Navy’s Director, Submarine Programmes Vice Admiral Rob Gaucher commented: “This reclassification is a clear acknowledgment of the increased lethality VPM brings to the undersea fight.
“These VPM-equipped SSGNs will ensure the Navy continues to dominate the undersea domain for decades to come. By integrating this additional payload capacity, we will have the ability to surge strike power to assure our allies, deter aggression, outmatch any adversary, and give our fleet commanders an incredibly versatile, hard-hitting instrument of national power.”
The increased firepower offered by the CPM-enabled SSGNs is intended to help offset the loss of capability which will come when the U.S. Navy starts its imminent phased retirement of four Ohio-class SSGNs.
Its Chief of Naval Operations, Adm. Daryl Caudle observed: “This transition comes at an important moment as USS Georgia, one of the Navy’s four Ohio-class guided-missile submarines, begins the inactivation process after more than four decades of exceptional service.
“Georgia and her sister ships proved the enduring value of combining undersea stealth with unmatched clandestine strike capability. The next generation of Virginia-class SSGNs builds on that legacy with greater survivability, adaptability, and sustained combat power.”
- You can read more details on the U.S. Navy website
