The U.S. Navy’s largest shipbuilder, Huntington Ingalls, has been awarded a $136 million contract modification to exercise options for a variety of services on the USS Columbus (SSN 762), according to a statement issued Thursday by the Department of Defense.
The modification to the cost-plus-fixed-fee contract involves the performance of the repair, maintenance, upgrades and modernization efforts on the USS Columbus (SSN 762) Engineered Overhaul.
“Work will be performed in Newport News, Virginia, and is expected to be complete by November 2020,” the Department of Defense message states.
USS Columbus is the 51st Los Angeles-class submarine and the 12th improved version of this class, which includes a vertical launch system for Tomahawk cruise missiles and an improved hull design for under-ice operations. In June 1994, she completed a post-shipyard maintenance availability in Groton, Conn., after initial construction and shakedown operations. In September 1994, the ship conducted an inter-fleet transfer to Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, and joined the U.S. Pacific Fleet Submarine Force.
The USS Columbus is a flexible, multi-mission platform designed to carry out the seven core competencies of the submarine force: anti-submarine warfare, anti-surface warfare, irregular warfare, intelligence, surveillance, reconnaissance, and mine warfare. It is 377 feet long, 34 feet wide, and weighs nearly 7,800 tons. It is powered by a nuclear reactor to push the boat through the water at speeds of more than 25 knots while submerged.
As the most modern and sophisticated attack submarine in the world, the Columbus can operate in both littoral and deep ocean environments and presents combatant commanders with a broad and unique range of operational capabilities.
