The U.S. Navy’s first Columbia-class ballistic missile submarine arrives in 2028—and developers are calling it the quietest, most lethal submarine ever built. With an electric drive propulsion system, an X-shaped stern, and 16 Trident II D5 nuclear missiles, the Columbia-class is designed to lurk silently in the dark corners of the ocean for the next 60 years of American nuclear deterrence.
The Columbia-Class Is Getting Ready for a Nuclear War
The Navy’s first next-generation high-tech new Columbia-class submarine will arrive in 2028 as the service works intensely to build its first two nuclear-armed boats.
Intended to quietly and secretly lurk in dark corners of the ocean in a position to launch a catastrophic “second-strike” retaliation in the event the US comes under nuclear attack, the new Columbia-class submarines will introduce a new generation of undersea technology.
The submarines could not arrive too soon, as the existing Ohio-class ballistic missile submarines have already served decades beyond their intended service life – and securing the undersea portion of the nuclear triad with Columbia submarines has long been deemed the Pentagon’s top acquisition priority.
The first Columbia-class patrols are slated for the early 2030s as part of a new era in undersea strategic deterrence intended to function well into the 2080s and beyond.
A second Columbia-class submarine is also well underway in the construction process.
Modules, as they are called, continue to take shape at General Dynamics Electric Boat in Groton, CT., and much of the initial production and science and technology work began more than 10 years ago.
Columbia-Class SSBN USN. Image Credit: Creative Commons.
As early as 2014, the Navy was working on what’s called “tube and hull forging” to weld missile tubes into 4-pack units for integration into emerging ship modules. The technologies for the boat also date back many years and have been designed to be work in progress, meaning they are engineered to meet technical standards so new innovations can be quickly and easily integrated.
Stealthiest Submarine Ever
Interestingly, the Columbia-class submarines are described by their developers as perhaps the quietest and most lethal submarines ever built.
While much of the boat’s technology is not available for security reasons, the boat is engineered with an electric drive propulsion system that can both power the boat with additional electricity and greatly reduce the submarine’s acoustic signature.
Being stealthier than any submarine ever to exist would be a critical advantage for nuclear-armed submarines, as their tactical advantage depends upon “not” being detected. A quieter submarine emitting a smaller or less detectable undersea acoustic signature would, of course, be much less likely to give away its position of strategic advantage.
Early rendering of what Columbia-class could look like
X-Shaped Stern
The new Columbia-class submarines are also being built with a new “X” shaped stern designed to improve undersea maneuverability while generating a smaller or less detectable “signature.”
In today’s Ohio-class submarines, a reactor plant generates heat, which in turn powers a steam turbine.
The steam then turns the turbines that produce the sub’s electricity and also propels the ship forward. This propulsion is achieved through “reduction gears,” which translate the high-speed energy from a turbine into the shaft RPMs needed to drive a boat’s propeller.
The Columbia-class submarines are designed to be 560 feet long and to house 16 Trident II D5 missiles fired from 44-foot-long missile tubes.
The “X”-shaped stern will restore maneuverability to submarines; as submarine designs progressed from propellers to propulsors to improve quieting, submarines lost some surface maneuverability.
Electric-drive propulsion technology still relies on a nuclear reactor to generate heat and create steam to power turbines; however, the electricity produced is transferred to an electric motor rather than so-called reduction gears to spin the boat’s propellers.
Navy Plans 12 Columbia-class Boats
Should one Columbia-class submarine be detected, giving a potential adversary the possibility that they might be able to stop, neutralize, or prevent any US Navy second-strike retaliatory option, the Navy plans for built-in redundancy with a fleet of 12 Columbia-class submarines, simultaneously positioned in critical parts of the undersea to strike.
The presence of multiple Columbia-class patrols at once can ensure a second-strike retaliatory attack capability, even if one is found, disabled, or destroyed by an adversary before a nuclear attack.
There are currently 14 Ohio-class submarines, yet the Columbia-class will only consist of 12 boats, in large measure because they are being built with a cutting-edge “life-of-core” nuclear reactor, meaning they won’t have to spend time away from service out of the water in dry dock for mid-life refueling halfway through their service life.
PACIFIC OCEAN (June 28, 2024) – An AS-332 Super Puma assigned to the Lewis and Clark-class dry cargo ship USNS Cesar Chavez (T-AKE 14) delivers supplies to the Ohio-class ballistic missile submarine USS Louisiana (SSBN 743) during a vertical replenishment at sea, June 28, 2024. The presence of the SSBN in the Pacific demonstrates the flexibility, survivability, readiness, and capability of the U.S. Navy submarine forces and complements the many exercises, training, operations, and other military cooperation activities conducted by Strategic Forces to ensure they are available and ready to operate around the globe at any time. Homeported in Bangor, Washington and currently assigned to Submarine Squadron 17, Louisiana is an undetectable launch platform for submarine-launched ballistic missiles, providing the United States with its most survivable leg of the nuclear triad. (U.S. Navy Photo by Mass Communication Specialist Seaman Andrew McPeek)
190907-N-UR565-0660NAVAL SUPPORT ACTIVITY SOUDA BAY, Greece (Sept. 7, 2019) The Ohio-class cruise missile submarine USS Florida (SSGN 728) arrives in Souda Bay, Greece, for a scheduled port visit, Sept. 7, 2019. NSA Souda Bay is an operational ashore base that enables U.S., allied, and partner nation forces to be where they are needed and when they are needed to ensure security and stability in Europe, Africa, and Southwest Asia. (Photo by Joel Diller/Released)
A fleet of 12 Columbia-class submarines can accomplish much more undersea strategic-deterrence “presence” and deployment times can be extended.
New Technology
Also, Columbia-class submarines are being built with several cutting-edge technological innovations, as are the US Navy’s new generation of Virginia-class attack submarines.
Block III and beyond, US-Navy Virginia-class attack submarines are built with a next-generation “fiber-optic” visual sensor cable, which enables commanders and ship navigators to see a “periscope” view from anywhere in the boat.
The new nuclear-armed submarines are also being engineered with a “fly-by-wire” computerized navigational system, which replaces previous hydraulic mechanical systems.
Using computer automation, depth and speed can be analyzed and set to a certain extent semi-autonomously while managed by a human decision-maker, and maneuvering can be controlled with a digital “joystick”- type navigation system.
About the Author: Kris Osborn
Kris Osborn is the Military Technology Editor of 19FortyFive. Osborn is also 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.
