While the United States Navy (US Navy) is focused on integrating the new Virginia-class nuclear-powered attack submarines, designed to replace the aging Los Angeles-class, the force is already projecting the incorporation of a new class to replace it. Provisionally named the Next-Generation Attack Submarine Program (or SSN(X)), it aims to succeed the current Virginia class in the coming decades. Although still in the design and development phase, with funding allocated for Fiscal Years 2024 and 2025, the program has already encountered its first major setback with the revision of the estimated date for the introduction of the first unit.
Despite many details being shrouded in military secrecy, as well as due to the program’s early development stage, the United States Navy states that the future SSN(X) submarines “…will be designed to counter the growing threat posed by adversarial competition for undersea supremacy. They will offer greater speed, increased horizontal payload capacity [i.e., in the torpedo room], improved acoustic superiority, optimized non-acoustic signatures, and greater operational availability. The SSN(X) will conduct full-spectrum undersea warfare and will be capable of coordinating with a larger contingent of external vehicles, sensors, and allied forces.”
This statement is derived from a document released by the United States Congressional Research Service (CRS), an agency responsible for providing reports on various issues of importance to be addressed by U.S. congressmen and senators. The publication, unveiled in mid-December, provides a general overview of the U.S. Navy’s SSN(X) program while identifying issues to be considered.
One of these is the Navy’s reported revision of the acquisition date for the first unit of the new class of attack submarines. Initially projected for Fiscal Year 2035, the date has now been pushed to Fiscal Year 2040, posing challenges for the nation’s industrial base linked to other critical programs for the Navy, such as the new Columbia-class ballistic missile submarines.
On this point, the document notes: “The delay in the start of SSN(X) construction, from the mid-2030s to the early 2040s, poses a significant challenge for the submarine design industrial base due to the prolonged gap between the Columbia-class design programs and the SSN(X), which will be managed by the Navy.”
This is no minor detail, as the report also highlights, beyond the industrial impact, the strain on funding capabilities for other crucial Navy programs, such as the development of the aforementioned Columbia class (intended to replace the current Ohio class), nuclear-powered aircraft carriers, and frigates, among others, forcing prioritization of some projects over others.
Other considerations are also listed. For example: whether the new submarines should be built by a single shipyard or jointly (mentioning General Dynamics and HII), and whether it would be cost-effective to use a “…reactor that employs Low Enriched Uranium (LEU) instead of the Highly Enriched Uranium (HEU)” used by other nuclear-powered vessels.
For Fiscal Year 2025, the U.S. Navy has already requested $586.9 million for research and development of the SSN(X) Program.
Finally, summarizing aspects of the new class’s design, the U.S. Navy has stated that the goal for the SSN(X) submarines is to combine the capabilities of the current generation of attack platforms in service. More specifically, the document notes that the Navy seeks to incorporate “…the speed and payload capacity of the Seawolf-class (SSN-21) submarine design, which is fast and heavily armed, the acoustic quietness and sensors of the Virginia-class design, and the operational availability and lifespan of the Columbia-class design.”
Cover photo used for illustrative purposes only – Virginia-class submarine USS Missouri (SSN-780).
You may also like: F-15 and F-16 fighters, along with A-10 attack aircraft from the U.S. Air Force, carried out strikes against terrorist groups in Iraq
