The US Navy will name its second Columbia-class ballistic missile submarine as Wisconsin and bear SSBN-827 as the hull number.
Announced by US Secretary of the Navy (SECNAV) Kenneth Braithwaite, the vessel will be the third to be named after the US state of Wisconsin.
The Illinois-class pre-dreadnought battleship, USS Wisconsin (BB-9), was the first US Navy ship to bear the name and was commissioned in 1901.
The second ship to be named after the state was the Iowa-class battleship USS Wisconsin (BB-64), which was commissioned in 1944.
Braithwaite said: “The Wisconsin namesake carries a great legacy that will undoubtedly be continued with our next Columbia-class submarine.
“Following in the wake of the great battleship, this Wisconsin will serve as the first line of deterrence and defence in today’s era of Great Power Competition.”
Previously called SSBN-X Future Follow-on Submarine, a class of 12 new Columbia-class submarines will replace the US Navy’s existing force of 14 ageing Ohio-class ballistic missile submarines.
In September last year, General Atomics Electromagnetic Systems (GA-EMS) secured a contract to manufacture and deliver components for the Columbia-class nuclear-powered submarines.
In May, Huntington Ingalls Industries (HII) started advance construction work on Columbia (SSBN 826), the US Navy’s lead ballistic missile submarine.
The navy wants to procure the first Columbia-class boat in FY2021 and the second in FY2024. The remaining ten units are expected to be acquired from FY2026 to FY2035.
