Key Points and Summary – America’s four Ohio-class SSGNs carry up to 154 Tomahawks apiece, giving the Navy a stealthy, mobile strike magazine for the first hours of war and long-duration undersea presence.
-Those boats—Ohio, Georgia, Michigan, and Florida—are slated to retire in the 2026–2028 timeframe, removing a concentrated punch the fleet relies on.
Ohio-Class SSBN. Image Credit: Creative Commons.
Ohio-Class SSGN. Image Credit: U.S. Navy.
-The Navy’s replacement plan centers on Block V Virginia-class submarines fitted with the Virginia Payload Module, adding an 80-foot section with 28 extra tubes and raising capacity to about 40 Tomahawks per boat.
-That means more hulls, fewer delays, and smarter strike mass before the SSGN retirement creates a real gap.
The U.S. Navy’s Biggest Tomahawk Submarines Are Retiring—What Replaces Them?
A US Navy SSGN Guided Missile Submarine is a massive, lethal warmachine that stretches nearly two football fields and carries as many as 154 Tomahawk missiles.
This firepower arms all four of the service’s SSGN boats. Undersea war platforms armed with massive firepower to bring land-attack support to any needed military campaign.
These boats and the unprecedented firepower they bring will be retiring in the coming years. This scenario has prompted the Navy to scramble to find replacements to provide undersea firepower.
This replacement is the US Navy’s Block V Virginia-class submarines, attack submarines with an extra 80-foot section to carry 28 additional Tomahawks per boat, bringing the total firepower of the submarine to 40 Tomahawks. The Navy is moving fast to accelerate production and delivery of these boats.
Yet they will need to “mass” in greater numbers to equal the SSGNs’ firepower advantage.
Virginia-Class. Image Credit: Creative Commons.
The SSGNs are the USS Ohio, USS Georgia, USS Michigan, and USS Florida, heavily armed boats slated to retire from 2026 to 2028.
Overall, the US Navy’s Ohio-class submarines have already operated for years beyond their intended service life, and the anticipated retirement of four large submarines capable of 154 Tomahawks each retires a massive amount of collective firepower.
Tomahawk Advantage
SSGNs have proven extremely valuable in key military campaigns, such as the attack on Libya in 2011 and the Gulf War; the ability to unleash “mass” precision fires at the beginning of a military campaign has proven decisive and impactful over the years, as Tomahawk weapons are often among the first to strike in a military operation.
They can destroy fixed infrastructure, command-and-control areas, bunkers, leadership locations, and force concentrations without putting attackers at risk. Tomahawks can travel as far as 900 miles at speeds greater than 550mph.
Block IV Tomahawks have a loitering ISR function and a two-way datalink enabling them to receive new information in flight and adjust to changing target information.
While capable of precision strikes, they can also prove critical in any effort to “mass” firepower, given the sheer volume with which they can deploy in an SSGN.
There is an interesting dynamic at play in this scenario: while there have been tremendous breakthroughs in range, data networking, and precision targeting with Tomahawks, there will still likely be a need for “mass” firepower in the event of a great power conflict.
Perhaps enemy air defenses can be targeted from the ocean, or battlefield surveillance can identify weapons storage facilities or force concentration targets that Tomahawks can best attack.
Dwell Time for Ohio-Class SSGNs Is Vital
Mission longevity has also been a key factor for SSGNs, as they can remain at sea for continuous missions for nearly two years if needed. The USS Florida, for example, is an SSGN that traveled nearly 70,000 miles throughout the course of 700 days.
Image of Virginia-class Submarine. Image Credit: Creative Commons.
This dwell time is significant from a tactical point of view, as a submarine capable of sustaining undersea operations for this duration increases survivability and improves mission prospects.
This ability to sustain operations and project power is particularly relevant in areas such as the Pacific, where a vast maritime expanse might require extended deployments and a potential need for large-scale firepower.
For instance, a boat that has not needed to return to port can remain underwater in strategically vital locations and be in a position to support clandestine underwater surveillance and attack.
More specifically, these larger SSGNs can carry and deploy Special Operations Forces groups to conduct covert missions, beginning with stealthy, surprise undersea attacks or reconnaissance operations.
About the Author: Kris Osborn
Kris Osborn is the President of Warrior Maven – Center for Military Modernization. Osborn previously served at the Pentagon as a highly qualified expert in the Office of the Assistant Secretary of the Army—Acquisition, Logistics & Technology. Osborn has also worked as an anchor and on-air military specialist at national TV networks. He has appeared as a guest military expert on Fox News, MSNBC, The Military Channel, and The History Channel. He also has a Masters Degree in Comparative Literature from Columbia University.
