Groundbreaking features of USS Hawaii and other Virginia-class submarines
The first Navy submarine class specially suited to operate in the open ocean as well as close to shore.
The first submarine class built without a periscope, Virginia-class subs use extendable photonic masts with fiber-optic imagery systems instead.
Sophisticated hydrophones serve as the sub’s “ears,” able to pick up signals from miles away that even most satellites do not pick up. Sonar arrays across the sub’s body create a state-of-the-art system for mapping the ocean floor and gathering intelligence.
The sub’s nuclear reactor plant provides fuel for the ship’s entire life span, which can be more than 30 years.
A nine-man airlock chamber allows an entire Special Forces team to enter and exit the sub at once. (Older submarine classes allow for only two at a time.)
