USS Florida (SSGN-728)
Florida off the coast of Nunavut |
|
Overview | |
---|---|
Order | February 28, 1975 |
Keel laying | 4th July 1976 |
Launch | November 14, 1981 |
1. Period of service | |
Commissioning | June 18, 1983 |
Technical specifications | |
displacement |
16,764 tons surfaced, 18,750 tons submerged |
length |
170.7 m |
width |
12.8 m |
Draft |
11.1 m |
crew |
15 officers, 140 sailors |
drive |
An S8G reactor |
speed |
20+ kn submerged |
Armament |
154 cruise missiles, 4 torpedo tubes |
The USS Florida (SSBN- / SSGN-728) is a United States Navy submarine and belongs to the Ohio class .
history
The contract to build the boat went on February 28, 1975 to the Electric Boat Division of General Dynamics Corporation in Groton , Connecticut . The keel of the boat was laid on July 4th, 1976 , the bicentenary of the independence of the United States. At the time the keel was laid, the boat was still unnamed.
In 2003, the Norfolk Naval Shipyard began converting the Florida into a cruise missile submarine (SSGN) for around one billion US dollars . In 2006 she was reassigned to the fleet and has 154 cruise missiles. Two former vertical take-off systems for missiles have been replaced by locks through which special forces can take off underwater for their missions. One of the locks leads to a 12 meter long waterproof and removable container (Dry Deck Shelter; DDS), which contains a SEAL Delivery Vehicle (SDV) for dropping combat divers . The Florida can accommodate a total of around 66 soldiers from elite units .
During the civil war in Libya , the Florida sailed into the Great Syrte and on March 19, 2011 fired UGM-109 Tomahawk cruise missiles at Libyan targets as part of Operation Odyssey Dawn . During the entire operation, it shot down over 90 cruise missiles. This was the first use of one of the converted Ohio boats.
Web links
- Official website of the USS Florida ( Memento of July 5, 2007 on the Internet Archive )