US Navy Virginia Class Nuclear Attack Submarines

TerraN_EmpirE

Tyrant King
The Deterrence mission is still valid and SSBN's are the most effective of the American Triad, and despite Claims to the Contrary the big nuclear powers are still well armed and aimed. Both Russia and China have the locations of American Missile Silos, the Time a Bomber could get into the Air and get to target is to long. SSBN's are Hard to find mobile and alway's in rotation.
 

Jeff Head

General
Registered Member
Why do we need so many SSBNs? Aren't we better off mothballing some of them in favor of more SSNs?
No. Absolutely not.

The role and mission of the SSBN is completely different than the SSN.

The SSBN is a strategic deterrent.

The SSN is a hunter/killer and strike platform, used tactically in war.

The Triad of nuclear deterrent remains absolutely necessary.

Fourteen of those boats, so that we can have 3-4 deployed at all times, is a very critical insurance policy in a nuclear armed world. one that has proven itself capable of the deterrence that it brings. It represents the hardest part to find and eliminate.

Now, back on topic. The Virginia Class SSNs.
 

FORBIN

Lieutenant General
Registered Member
Past and Projected Annual Procurement Quantities

Virginia 1.PNG

Projected SSN Shortfall

Virginia 2.PNG

After 2020, 1.5 Virginia by years because replacement of Ohio begin and it entertains some part of the USN construction budget, USN planned actually one SSBN-X want 5 billions.
 

FORBIN

Lieutenant General
Registered Member
New modules installed from Virginia block III, the first North Dakota soon delivered, 11th Virginia is the first to have this.

http://www.sinodefenceforum.com/wor...a-class-nuclear-attack-submarines-3-6202.html
#35


And VPM for Virginia Block V : 4 modules with 7 missiles :
Virginia Payload Module (VPM)
DOD and the Navy are considering building Virginia-class boats procured in FY2019 and
subsequent years (i.e., the anticipated Block V and beyond boats) with an additional mid-body
section, called the Virginia Payload Module (VPM). The VPM, reportedly about 70 feet in
length15 (earlier design concepts for the VPM were reportedly about 94 feet in length),16 contains
four large-diameter, vertical launch tubes that would be used to store and fire additional
Tomahawk cruise missiles or other payloads, such as large-diameter unmanned underwater
vehicles (UUVs).17
The four additional launch tubes in the VPM could carry a total of 28 additional Tomahawk cruise
missiles (7 per tube),18 which would increase the total number of torpedo-sized weapons (such as
Tomahawks) carried by the Virginia class design from about 37 to about 65—an increase of about
76%.19
Building Virginia-class boats with the VPM would compensate for a sharp loss in submarine
force weapon-carrying capacity that will occur with the retirement in FY2026-FY2028 of the
Navy’s four Ohio-class cruise missile/special operations forces support submarines (SSGNs).20
Each SSGN is equipped with 24 large-diameter vertical launch tubes, of which 22 can be used to
carry up to 7 Tomahawks each, for a maximum of 154 vertically launched Tomahawks per boat,
or 616 vertically launched Tomahawks for the four boats. Twenty-two Virginia-class boats built
with VPMs could carry 616 Tomahawks in their VPMs.
The Navy estimates that adding the VPM would increase the procurement cost of the Virginiaclass
design by $350 million in current dollars, or by about 13%.

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Ohio SSGN, VLS.
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93fiM5

New Member
Thanks Forbin, exactly what I was after! As Jeff mentioned this will definitely be a nice step forward to replace the Ohio SSGNs!

-Greg
 

asif iqbal

Lieutenant General
The only way to avoid the numbers dip of the SSN fleet in USN between 2025 to 2035 is to up the build rate to 2 x SSN per year indefinitely

However there is no request as of yet to do that nor do I think they want to although the SSN will be down the missile tubes are almost he same
 

Jeff Head

General
Registered Member
Thanks Forbin, exactly what I was after! As Jeff mentioned this will definitely be a nice step forward to replace the Ohio SSGNs!
To understand best where the Virginia class is going with the VPMs, and how it will develop into the replacement for the Ohio SSGNs, you have understand how the US Navy got to where it is.

First, the US Navy began installing Vertical launchers on its Flight II Los Angeles class nuclear powered attack submarines, beginning with the USS Providence, SSN-719, which was commissioned in 1985. Thirty-one Los Angeles class submarines were built with this capability. This same type of capability (meaning twelve individual VLS Cells) have been installed on the initial two blocks of the Virginia class submrines.


ssn-vls.jpg


There are twelve of these on those later class Los Angeles class SSNs, and there are twelve on the first ten Virginia class SSNs. This gives these boats the capability to fire up to twelve Submarine Launched Cruise Missiles (SLCMs) at enemy targets

After this was done with the later LA Class boats and while being built into the intial Virginia Class boats, the US Navy modified four Ohio Class SSBN nuclear ballistic missile submrines to meet its nculear missile treaty obligations. The four modifed boats became SSGNs, nuclear powered guided missile submarines.

The modification took twenty-two of the twenty-four trident missile silos, and placed an insert into those silos that could fire seven Tomahawk SLCMs each. These are called Multiple All-up Round Cannisters (MACs). This allowed for 154 SLCMs for each of those four boats. The other two tubes were modified to be lock-in, lock-out chambers for Navy SEALs.


ssgn-01.jpg


ssgn-02.jpg


These modules were designed for furture contigencies in mind. So in addition to being able to launch up to seven Tomahawk SLCM each, they were also designed to accomodate numerous future weapons. These would include the next generation of supersonic or hypersonic cruise missiles, unmanned air vehicles (UAVs), various sensors and weapons for anti-submarine warfare, various sensors for intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance missions, countermine warfare payloads such as the Long Term Mine Reconnaissance System (LMRS), other specialized payload canisters such as the broaching universal buoyant launcher (BUBL) or stealthy affordable capsule system (SACS) or the the ADM-160 MALD decoy system.

The four Ohio SSGN boats are going to be retired sometime in the late 202s to early 2030s. The US wants to augment and replace those SSGN boats, but has decided not to creat a seperate class to do so. They intend to lengthen the Virginia Class submarines, starting woith the block V boats in order to give more space for more SLCMs.

Here's how they plan to get there.

Starting with the current Block III build of the USS North Dakota (which was launched in 2013), the twelve indivdual vertical tubes shown above, or going to be replaced on the bow of the vessel with two special Mulitple All-up Round Cannisters. Each of these MACs will be able to fire six tomahawk SLCMs and use the same technology employed for the Ohio SSGNs (meaning the ability to launch all the various sytems that the Ohio MAC was designed to accomodate), but updated and altered for the Virginia Class submarines.


virginia-mac.jpg


All eight Block III Virginia class SSNs, and all nine Block IV vessels will be built with the new Virginia MACs for firing their SLCMs and other weapons.

Then, beginning in 2019, with the start of conbstruction of the first Block V Virginia Class submarines, the submarine will undergo an even larger modification. Aft of the sail, an approximately 80-100 foot section will be added to the boats. This section will be specifically designed to house four new Multiple Launch Vertical Missile cells called Virginia Payload Modules (VPMs). Each of these modules will allow seven tomahawk SLCMs to be launched (along with the other types of payloads mentioned for the MAC). For of these modules will be added to each of these vessels.


virginia-vpm.jpg


These subs will then be built in some numbers...up to twenty of them. They will be the replacemnt for the Ohio SSGNs, except they will be hybrid vessels that can perform equally well as either a fully capable SSN, nuclear powered attack submarine, or as an SSGN, nuclear powered guided missile submarine carrying forty SLCMs each.

This is how the US Navy has gotten to the Virginia VPM, and how it will be used to replace the Ohio SSGNs. By the time the VPM is active in the early 2020s, the US Navy will have spent 35+ years getting there.
 
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93fiM5

New Member
To understand best where the Virginia class is going with the VPMs, and how it will develop into the replacement for the Ohio SSGNs, you have understand how the US Navy got to where it is.

First, the US Navy began installing Vertical launchers on its Flight II Los Angeles class nuclear powered attack submarines, beginning with the USS Providence, SSN-719, which was commissioned in 1985. Thirty-one Los Angeles class submarines were built with this capability. This same type of capability (meaning twelve individual VLS Cells) have been installed on the initial two blocks of the Virginia class submrines.

...

This is how the US Navy has gotten to the Virginia VPM, and how it will be used to replace the Ohio SSGNs. By the time the VPM is active in the early 2020s, the US Navy will have spent 35+ years getting there.

Thanks for the detailed response, nice to hear the history from someone who was involved with some of the development of the Virginia's. The Block V boats will definitely an improvement over the Ohio SSGNs in terms of total number of missiles in the water, distribution, and flexibility.

-Greg
 
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FORBIN

Lieutenant General
Registered Member
USS North Dakota (SSN-784).

Although the May 31st commissioning date for USS NORTH DAKOTA had to be postponed and is now reset for October 25, 2014
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Some problems fixed for this first Virginia block III with a bow redesigned for new VLS and sonar.
 
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