U.S. Navy Takes Delivery Of Virginia-Class Submarine Massachusetts After Successful Trials

American shipbuilding company, Huntington Ingalls Industries (HII) has delivered the Virginia-class fast-attack submarine Massachusetts (SSN 798) to the U.S. Navy.

The submarine completed its sea trials in October and was officially handed over on 21 November, according to both the Navy and industry officials.

Massachusetts is the 12th Virginia-class submarine delivered by HII’s Newport News Shipbuilding (NNS) and the 25th produced under the long-running partnership between NNS and General Dynamics Electric Boat.

It is also the fifth U.S. Navy vessel to carry the name of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.

NNS President Kari Wilkinson said through a company announcement that handing over the submarine after its demanding trials represented an important commitment fulfilled for the year.

She added that the team remained firmly focused on increasing the pace of submarine production, viewing this delivery as a meaningful step towards that objective.

Massachusetts was built using modular construction across NNS in Virginia and Electric Boat’s yard in Groton, Connecticut.

More than 10,000 shipbuilders from both yards worked on the submarine, supported by thousands of suppliers across the United States, including over 20 based in Massachusetts.

The nuclear-powered fast-attack submarine was christened in May 2023, with Sheryl Sandberg, founder of Lean In and former chief operating officer of Meta, serving as the ship’s sponsor.

According to Naval Sea Systems Command, Massachusetts will be commissioned in Boston Harbour. While the commissioning committee has not yet confirmed a date, the ceremony is scheduled for spring 2026.

The delivery of Massachusetts follows a series of recent milestones for the U.S. Navy, which has also commissioned the final Independence-variant Littoral Combat Ship, accepted a future Arleigh Burke-class destroyer, and christened another Virginia-class submarine, the future USS Utah (SSN-801).

References: HII, USNI

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