US Navy Columbia-class submarine passes construction milestone
The transition from the Ohio class, pictured above, to the Columbia class will ensure continuous sea-based strategic deterrence into the 2080s. (Photo: US Navy)
General Dynamics celebrated a key milestone in the construction of the new Columbia-class submarine with a keel laying ceremony.
General Dynamics Electric Boat hosted the keel laying ceremony for the Columbia-class ballistic missile submarine, USS District of Columbia, on 4 June.
District of Columbia is the first Columbia-class ballistic missile submarine being constructed in the minimum 12-ship class, which will replace the existing 14 Ohio-class nuclear-ballistic submarine that is due to begin to retire from 2027.
Adm Daryl Caudle, commander, US Fleet Forces Command, commented at the ceremony: ‘the District of Columbia, and all those in its class, will continue to serve as the most survivable leg of the nuclear triad’.
The nuclear triad refers to the nuclear strategy that consists of land-launched nuclear missiles, nuclear-missile-armed submarines and strategic aircraft with nuclear bombs and missiles.
The Columbia class will carry 16 missiles each, which represents approximately 70% of the US nuclear triad.
The Columbia will be the largest submarine ever built by the US, with a length of 560ft and a displacement of 20,810t. Its reactor will not require refuelling during the lifetime of planned service.
Related Equipment in Defence Insight
You may also like
More from Naval Warfare
-
![Suppliers await next step in Australia’s mine warfare transition]()
Suppliers await next step in Australia’s mine warfare transition
Australia’s mine countermeasure capability remains in flux as the Huon-class nears retirement, but accelerated investment in autonomous systems is opening a path for industry.
-
![Can the US Navy ask Indo-Pacific allies to do more while training with them less?]()
Can the US Navy ask Indo-Pacific allies to do more while training with them less?
As the Iran War draws US ships and marine corps units away from the Indo-Pacific, curtailed exercises and a temporary carrier gap are exposing tensions between Washington’s demand for more self-reliant allies and the joint training needed to realise that ambition.
-
![How could Rheinmetall’s GMF 140 fit with ongoing programmes in North America?]()
How could Rheinmetall’s GMF 140 fit with ongoing programmes in North America?
With Canada committed to its River-class replacement and the USN pursuing a lower-cost frigate, Rheinmetall will need to demonstrate where the GMF 140 can fill a capability gap in the North American fleet.
-
![South Korea, Japan and Turkey vie for US shipbuilding access in future frigate contest]()
South Korea, Japan and Turkey vie for US shipbuilding access in future frigate contest
Washington’s search for a foreign-built frigate could hand South Korea, Japan and Turkey a larger prize than a double-hull order: a foothold inside the US shipbuilding industrial base.
-
![Japan’s FY2027 budget bets on stand-off systems to offset demographic decline]()
Japan’s FY2027 budget bets on stand-off systems to offset demographic decline
Japan’s FY2027 defence budget backs stand-off strike, a 17-aircraft MQ-9B buy and a declared bid to lead the world in uncrewed maritime assets, alongside new frigates, submarines and support ships.
