US Shipbuilder Cuts First Steel for Lead Columbia-Class Ballistic Missile Submarine
Huntington Ingalls Industries officially began construction for the first-of-class USS Columbia on May 23.
By Franz-Stefan Gady
May 27, 2019
U.S. shipbuilder Huntington Ingalls Industries (HII) hosted a first steel-cutting ceremony at its Newport News Shipbuilding division in Virginia on May 23 to mark the beginning of the advance construction of the first-of-class USS Columbia, the lead boat of a new class of nuclear-powered ballistic missile submarines (SSBNs) for the U.S. Navy.
The Columbia-class will replace the Ohio-class of SSBNs, 14 of which are currently in service with the U.S. Navy. The lead SSBN of the Columbia-class is expected to be delivered to the U.S. Navy by 2028. “After being delivered in [fiscal year] 2028, the lead boat would undergo substantial testing, with the aim of having it be ready for its first deterrent patrol in 2031,†according to a May 2019 Congressional Research Report (CRS).
The Columbia-class of 12 SSBNs is designed for a 42-year service life all the way through 2085.
https://thediplomat.com/2019/05/us-shipbuilder-cuts-first-steel-for-lead-columbia-class-ballistic-missile-submarine/
