General Dynamics (GD) Electric Boat has been awarded an $89.8m modification contract by the US Navy to continue to support the common missile compartment programme.
The programme is currently under development for the US Ohio-class replacement submarine and the UK’s Successor-class ballistic-missile submarine.
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Under the modification contract, Electric Boat will procure missile-tube long-lead-time material to support manufacturing of the common missile compartment.
In December 2012, GD first received a $1.85bn five-year contract to carry out research and development work for the navy’s next-generation ballistic-missile submarine.
GD plans to start construction of the submarine in 2021. The overall contract has a potential value of around $2.3bn.
Armed with Lockheed a Martin-built Trident missile, the Ohio-class submarines feature Northrop Grumman’s advanced SEAL delivery system (ASDS) and four 533mm torpedo tubes with an mk118 digital fire control system.
The 16,600t Ohio-class submarines can cruise at a speed of over 25k, using a 325hp Magnatek auxiliary propeller motor, and are also integrated with an AN/BQQ-10(V4) sonar processing system and a BPS 15A I/J-band radar.
The UK Royal Navy’s four Vanguard-class nuclear-powered submarines, which are armed with four torpedo tubes and 16 Trident missiles, will be replaced by Successor nuclear-powered submarines from 2028.
