First Columbia Ballistic Missile Submarine Begins to Take Shape - USNI News ......Last week, USNI News toured the Quonset Point facility and EB’s yard in Groton, where the first pieces of Columbia have been under construction since 2020. While carrying eight fewer nuclear missiles than its predecessor, Columbia will be longer, heavier and feature a complex electric drive propulsion system and associated technology to keep the class relevant for the 50-year lifespan of the boomer. “Columbia is a 20,000-ton submarine. It’s the largest, most complex submarine that’s ever been built,” Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Mike Gilday told USNI News in an interview en route to the construction facility. Brief on this from Aaron for those willing to watch beginning at 14:00 BONUS SQUIRRELS for those that watch most of the rest of the vid..... So. Ohio Class Missile boats... (SSBN) 24 missile tubes. 16,764 tonnes (16,499 long tons) surfaced 18,750 tonnes (18,450 long tons) submerged Length 560 ft Beam 42 ft Nuclear reactor driving geared turbines (steam.) being replaced by..... Columbia Class Missile boats. 16 missile tubes. Displacement 20,810 long tons (21,140 t) (submerged) Length MORE THAN 560ft (rumored) Beam 43 ft Draft 35.5 ft Installed power Nuclear reactor Propulsion Turbo-electric drive, Both of these are BIG girls! Roughly twice the displacement of an SSN.....but what gives with the extra size and displacement for Columbia when there's 33% fewer tubes? Sixteen missile tubes versus 24 will be about 50' worth of hull length in space savings, and yet the newer boat is reportedly going to be longer. Unless America is going to take a page from their Air Force brethren and use strategic (nuclear armed) platforms for non-strategic stuff, unlike Aaron I'm at a loss as to what you would do with all that extra space. Things that make you go hmmmmmmm...... I'm thinking that a turbo-electric drive should be MORE COMPACT than a geared steam turbine drive but that's obviously specu-guessing, Either way? It's going to be a lot quieter....and the Ohios were not (and ARE not) noisy boats!
