The United States Navy has officially commissioned USS Iowa (SSN 797), a Virginia-class fast-attack submarine, during a traditional ceremony at Naval Submarine Base New London in Groton, Connecticut.

The submarine is the 24th of its class, designed for stealth, endurance, and multi-mission versatility across a range of maritime operations. USS Iowa enters service equipped to conduct intelligence, surveillance, reconnaissance, special operations, anti-submarine and anti-surface warfare, as well as precision strike missions using Tomahawk cruise missiles.

Christie Vilsack, the vessel’s sponsor and former First Lady of Iowa, issued the ceremonial order to “man our ship and bring her to life,” prompting the submarine’s crew to board to enthusiastic applause.

Commander Gregory Coy, Iowa’s commanding officer, described the commissioning as “a historic milestone” for the crew and shipbuilders. “Today, we become the USS Iowa, and I intend to take her to the frontline,” he said. Coy has commanded the boat since June 2024, leading it through final outfitting and sea trials.

The vessel is the third U.S. Navy ship named Iowa, following a battleship that served in World War II, Korea, and the Gulf War. The newly commissioned submarine is 377 feet in length, with a beam of 34 feet, and is capable of speeds exceeding 25 knots and operating at depths greater than 800 feet. It carries a crew of approximately 135 personnel and is powered by a nuclear reactor that does not require refuelling during the vessel’s operational lifespan.

Secretary of the Navy John Phelan hailed the submarine as “a symbol of our unmatched undersea superiority” and praised both the shipbuilders and the sailors preparing it for operations. “As Iowa goes to sea, she does so with one mission: to ensure that America’s adversaries never doubt our resolve,” he said.

Also in attendance was Admiral Daryl Caudle, Commander of U.S. Fleet Forces, who called the submarine’s commissioning “a remarkable achievement.” Speaking directly to the crew, he said: “In this coming year, you will carry the name ‘Iowa’ to the far-flung corners of the globe, projecting combat power for decades to come.”

Constructed at General Dynamics Electric Boat in Groton, the submarine incorporates advanced surveillance and communications systems, as well as payload capabilities for unmanned systems and special operations forces. It joins a growing fleet of Virginia-class submarines which form a cornerstone of the U.S. Navy’s undersea warfare strategy.

USS Iowa now enters active service and is expected to begin deployment preparations shortly, contributing to U.S. naval presence and deterrence operations around the globe.

RELATED ARTICLESMORE FROM AUTHOR

18 COMMENTS

  1. I have made $180 reliably in one day.That was my ideal day in my life and my boss was to a great degree content with me..CNN is additionally awed from my work and is outstandingly happy..check also unpretentious parts by open the affiliation and tap on HOME TECH OR MEDIA…HERE————➤ 𝐖­𝐰­𝐰­.­­𝐞­­𝐚­­𝐫­­𝐧­­𝟓­­𝟒­­.­𝐜­𝐨­𝐦

    • Google pay 92 every hour my last check was 8400 working 10 hours per week on the web. My more youthful sibling companion has been averaging 18k throughout recent months and he works around 24 hours per week. I cannot accept how simple it was once I attempted it out.This is my main thing……… W­W­W.W­O­R­K­S­T­A­R­1.C­O­M

  2. Seriously. Question has to be asked. Instead of SSNr coming along in the mid to late 2030s how quickly could we build and get 3-4 more astute class into service? I ask this based on consecutive construction alongside the Dreadnought class.
    A revised Astute with missile payload section for 16 land attack or cruise missiles or just stick with original as pure sub and ship killer?

    • JOIN US Everybody can earn 250/h Dollar + daily 1K… You can earn from 8000-12000 Dollar a month or even more if you work as a part time job…It’s easy, just follow instructions on this page, read it carefully from start to finish… It’s a flexible job but a good eaning opportunity.tab for more detail thank you…

      COPY AND OPEN this_____ W­­w­w­­.­H­­i­g­h­­P­r­o­f­i­­t­1­­.­­C­o­m

    • You would need to magic up a load more shipyard capacity. Then you would need to magic up a new production line for the PWR2. Then you’d need to find a few hundred more personnel. Then you’d need to design this VLS section that we don’t currently have.

    • Mr Bell,
      We can’t build more Astute. The PWR2 reactor is no longer in production. The PWR3 is much bigger – and so the sub will have to have a larger pressure hull diameter to fit it. Hence we have to have a new design. There’s a lot of common systems with the Dreadnought class that are currently building – which given the long lead-time items (like reactors) are the same – you’d have to steal them from Dreadnought builds to put in a crash built SSN-Aukus. The design of which isn’t finished anyway, so you can’t.

      Second problem, boring accounting here. If you have a crash program to build subs – what do you do when you’ve built them? Say we could build 10 new SSNs by 2035? That would leave us with 4 brand new Trident and 10 brand new SSN-Aukus – all under ten years old. Plus 7 Astute, half of which wouln’t be all that much older. Although HMS Astute itself would be ready to scrap.

      This is fine if we wanted to have 20-25 boats in operation – but otherwise we’d have to stop building them for a bit – there’s not really an export market for nuke boats. Industrial policy comes in here. Feast or famine is what had Astute taking a million years to build – and the whole class of 7 boats taking nearly 20 years. I’d like us to have 12, which means build one every 2 years forever, and scrap them after 24. Lke Japan do with their conventional subs (they’ve built one a year for 2 decades now) and keep 20-odd operational.

    • Can’t be done as the PWR2 that powers Astute is out of service and hideously uncomplaining by modern standards.

      • “…hideously uncomplaining…”? Sorry, definitely must request further explanation of that sentence. 🤔

          • I have made $180 reliably in one day.That was my ideal day in my life and my boss was to a great degree content with me..CNN is additionally awed from my work and is outstandingly happy..check also unpretentious parts by open the affiliation and tap on HOME TECH OR MEDIA……

            HERE————➤ 𝗪­𝘄­𝘄.­𝗪­𝗼­𝗿­𝗸­𝟰­𝟰.𝗖­𝗼­𝗺­

  3. JOIN US Everybody can earn 250/h Dollar + daily 1K… You can earn from 8000-12000 Dollar a month or even more if you work as a part time job…It’s easy, just follow instructions on this page, read it carefully from start to finish… It’s a flexible job but a good eaning opportunity.tab for more detail thank you…

    For details check ——-⫸ W­w­w­.­W­o­r­­k­s­P­r­o­f­i­t­7­.­­C­o­m

  4. I wonder if SDR 2025 will give us any more insight into how many SSN A we want to order. Hopefully it’s 12 or more as first outlined under AUKUS.

    • Ok. So more Astute class would require a massive effort.
      In that case can we at least get SSNr construction going much much earlier eg pull the programme significantly to the left. Our SSN numbers are too low to protect our EEZ and keep Russian subs at bay.

  5. Will SDR 2025 be capable of accurately forecasting the SSN-A programme of the 2030s-2050s? Number may prove feasible if defence budget ultimately exceeds 3% of GDP. 🤔🤞

  6. Ummm, SECNAV, you may wish to reserve some of the self-congratulatory rhetoric until there is a demonstrated capability of producing 2+ SSNs/yr. Under promising and over delivering is the optimum path forward for US portion of AUKUS. 🤔🤞🤞

LEAVE A REPLY

Please enter your comment!
Please enter your name here