US Navy’s newest of Virginia-class attack submarines SSN 798 will bear the name USS Massachusetts.
According to an announcement made by US Secretary of the Navy Ray Mabus on November 8, during a taped video message at the Gillette Stadium in Massachusetts, the submarine will be named to honor the history its namesake state has with the Navy. The future USS Massachusetts will be the fifth Navy vessel to serve under that name.
Twelve of the next-generation submarines have been commissioned so far and they will replace Los Angeles Class submarines as they retire.
Each Virginia-class submarine is 7,800-tons and 377 feet in length, has a beam of 34 feet, and can operate at more than 25 knots submerged. They are designed with a reactor plant that will not require refueling during the planned life of the ship, reducing lifecycle costs while increasing underway time.
The submarine will be built under a teaming agreement between General Dynamics Electric Boat and Huntington Ingalls Industries’ Newport News Shipbuilding division wherein both companies build certain portions of each submarine and then alternate deliveries. Massachusetts will be delivered by Huntington Ingalls Industries’ Newport News Shipbuilding.
Image:US Navy