page_title: Virginia-class submarine
section_title: Block II
hierarchical_section_title: Virginia-class submarine / Boats / Block II
caption_attribution_description: English: GROTON, Conn. (June 21, 2008) Pre-commissioning Unit New Hampshire (SSN 778) sits moored to the pier at General Dynamics Electric Boat shipyard moments before her christening ceremony commenced. New Hampshire, the fifth Virginia class submarine built, was officially christened by sponsor Cheryl McGuinness. U.S. Navy photo by John Narewski (Released)
context_page_description: The Virginia class, also known as the SSN-774 class, is a class of nuclear-powered cruise missile fast-attack submarines, currently in military service in the United States Navy. Designed by General Dynamics's Electric Boat and Huntington Ingalls Industries, the Virginia-class submarines are the United States Navy's latest undersea warfare platform which incorporates the latest in stealth, intelligence gathering and weapons systems technology.
  Virginia-class submarines are designed for a broad spectrum of open-ocean and littoral missions, including anti-submarine warfare and intelligence gathering operations. They are scheduled to replace older Los Angeles-class submarines, many of which have already been decommissioned. Virginia-class submarines will be acquired through 2043, and are expected to remain in service until at least 2060, with later submarines expected to remain into the 2070s.
context_section_description: Block II involved 6 boats; they were built in four sections rather than ten sections, saving about $300 million per boat. Block II boats (excluding SSN-778) were also built under a multi-year procurement agreement as opposed to a block-buy contract in Block I, enabling savings in the range of $400 million ($80 million per boat). As a result of improvements in the construction process, New Hampshire was US$500 million cheaper, required 3.7 million fewer labor hours to build (25% less), thus shortening the construction period by 15 months (20% less) compared to Virginia.
caption: USS New Hampshire, the first of the Block II vessels
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