Mission
The 12 ballistic missile submarines of the ''Columbia'' class will perform deterrent patrols, the naval leg of the U.S. nuclear triad. They will replace the , whose submarines are to be decommissioned, one per year, beginning in 2027. ''District of Columbia'' will replace an as-yet-unannounced ''Ohio.''Design specification and parameters
In April 2014, the Navy completed a 300-page specification report for the ''Ohio'' Replacement Program submarines. There are 159 specifications including weapons, escape routes, fluid systems, hatches, doors, sea water systems, and a set length of (later confirmed in design specifications), partly to allow for sufficient volume inside the pressure hull.Costs and procurement
The design and technology development of the ''Columbia'' class is projected to cost $4.2 billion (fiscal 2010 dollars), although technology and components from the ''Ohio'' and classes are to be included where possible, to save money. The cost to build ''District of Columbia'', the lead boat of the class, will be an estimated $6.2 billion (fiscal 2010 dollars). The Navy has a goal of reducing the average cost of the remaining 11 planned hulls in the class to $4.9 billion each (fiscal 2010 dollars). The total lifecycle cost of the entire class is estimated at $347 billion. The high cost of the submarines is expected to cut deeply into Navy shipbuilding. The Navy procured the first ''Columbia''-class boat in FY2021. On 7 June 2021, the U.S. Navy Budget office announced that the total cost for the first submarine, ''District of Columbia'', would reach $15.03 billion, but that also includes planning costs for the entire program.Implementation and construction
In March 2016, the U.S. Navy announced that General Dynamics Electric Boat was chosen as the prime contractor and lead design yard. Electric Boat will carry out the majority of the work, on all 12 submarines, including final assembly. All 18 ''Ohio''-class submarines were built at Electric Boat as well. Huntington Ingalls Industries’ Newport News Shipbuilding will serve as the main subcontractor, participating in the design and construction and performing 22 to 23 percent of the required work. In late 2016, some 3,000 employees were involved, in Electric Boat alone, in the detailed design phase of the program, with the procurement for the first submarine established in 2021. Completion of ''District of Columbia'' is scheduled for 2030, followed by her entry into service in 2031. All 12 submarines are expected to be completed by 2042 and remain in service until 2085.Propulsion
Electric drive
''District of Columbia'' will have an electric drive propulsion system that uses an electric motor to turn the propeller of a vessel. It is part of a wider (Integrated electric power) concept whose aim is to create an "all electric vessel". Electric drive should reduce the life-cycle cost of the submarine while at the same time reducing acoustic signature. In 2014, Northrop Grumman was chosen as the prime designer and manufacturer of the turbine generator units. The turbines convert thermal energy in the steam into mechanical energy, and the generators convert that mechanical energy into electrical energy. The electrical energy is then used for powering onboard systems as well as for propulsion via electric motor.Weapons
Common missile compartment
In December 2008, General Dynamics Electric Boat Corporation was selected to design the Common Missile Compartment that will be used on the ''Columbia'' class. In 2012, the U.S. Navy announced plans for the class to share a common missile compartment (CMC) design with the Royal Navy's . The CMC will house SLBMs in "quad packs".References
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