WASHINGTON – Bringing massive amounts of firepower closer to enemy targets, conducting clandestine intelligence missions in high threat waters and launching undersea attack and surveillance drones are all anticipated missions for the Navy’s emerging Block V Virginia-class attack submarines. Kris Osborn at Warrior Maven reports. Continue reading original article

The Military & Aerospace Electronics take:

11 Dec. 2019 -- The boats, nine of which are surging ahead through a new developmental deal between the Navy and General Dynamics Electric Boat, are reshaping submarine attack strategies and concepts of operations -- as rivals make gains challenging U.S. undersea dominance.

Eight of the new 22-billion Block V deal are being engineered with a new 80-foot weapons section in the boat that enables the submarine to increase its attack missile capacity from 12 to 40 on-board Tomahawk cruise missiles.

The Navy reports also that the Virginia Block V attack submarines will incorporate acoustic superiority design changes to conceal the new boats from enemy sonar.

This article by John Keller originally appeared on Military & Aerospace Electronics in 2019.

Image: Reuters.