An SSN is a nuclear-powered general-purpose attack submarine. ''SSN'' is the

US Navy hull classification symbol The United States Navy, United States Coast Guard, and United States National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) use a hull classification symbol (sometimes called hull code or hull number) to identify their ships by type and by in ...

for such vessels; the ''SS'' denotes a submarine and the ''N'' denotes

nuclear power Nuclear power is the use of nuclear reactions to produce electricity. Nuclear power can be obtained from nuclear fission, nuclear decay and nuclear fusion reactions. Presently, the vast majority of electricity from nuclear power is produced ...

. The designation SSN is used for interoperability throughout

NATO The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO, ; french: Organisation du traité de l'Atlantique nord, ), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental military alliance between 30 member states – 28 European and two No ...

under STANAG 1166, though navies use other terms.

History

The first nuclear-powered attack submarine was the US Navy's , operational from 1954. This was followed by the four submarines of the entering service in 1957. The Royal Navy's first nuclear fleet submarine was which by using an American reactor entered service in 1963. The first all-British nuclear submarines were the two s. The USN submarine fleet has been all-nuclear powered for over two decades. The bulk of the USN's SSN fleet has been the ''Los Angeles''-class attack submarine. Designed during the Cold War the ''Los Angeles''-class boats ''raison d'etre'' was to protect USN carrier battle groups and to hunt Soviet Navy

SSBNs A ballistic missile submarine is a submarine capable of deploying submarine-launched ballistic missiles (SLBMs) with nuclear warheads. The United States Navy's hull classification symbols for ballistic missile submarines are SSB and SSBN � ...

before they could launch a first strike against the United States. The first ever major combat action involving an SSN was during the 1982

Falklands War The Falklands War ( es, link=no, Guerra de las Malvinas) was a ten-week undeclared war between Argentina and the United Kingdom in 1982 over two British dependent territories in the South Atlantic: the Falkland Islands and its territori ...

. An Argentinian cruiser, was sunk by

torpedo A modern torpedo is an underwater ranged weapon launched above or below the water surface, self-propelled towards a target, and with an explosive warhead designed to detonate either on contact with or in proximity to the target. Historically, s ...

es fired by the Royal Navy fleet submarine . After that incident, the Argentinian Navy was effectively confined to port. Since the end of the Cold War, SSNs have evolved into multi-mission submarines. Their roles include submarine-launched cruise missile platforms, intelligence gathering platforms, insertion and exfiltration of

special forces Special forces and special operations forces (SOF) are military units trained to conduct special operations. NATO has defined special operations as "military activities conducted by specially designated, organized, selected, trained and equip ...

teams in addition to traditional hunter-killer SSN roles. The advantages of an SSN over a conventionally powered SSK are much longer endurance (limited more by the crew than the boat, a nuclear submarine can stay submerged for months and does not need refueling in their 25-year lifespans), and higher speed. Unlike most SSKs, SSNs do not have to surface periodically for air, which would compromise their stealth. Some of the newest conventional submarines approach these advantages: Stirling engine powered vessels can cruise underwater for up to two weeks and, like diesel/electric vessels (and in theory LOX powered vessels), are significantly quieter than nuclear submarines, since they do not need to run the powerful (and noisy) pumps associated with the cooling circuits of pressurized water reactors. The main disadvantages of an SSN are the technological challenges and expenses of building and maintaining a

plant. Nuclear submarines can have political downsides, as some countries refuse to accept nuclear-powered vessels as a matter of policy. Furthermore, decommissioned nuclear submarines require costly dismantling and long term storage of the

radioactive waste Radioactive waste is a type of hazardous waste that contains radioactive material. Radioactive waste is a result of many activities, including nuclear medicine, nuclear research, nuclear power generation, rare-earth mining, and nuclear weap ...

. The following navies currently operate SSNs: * People's Liberation Army Navy of China *

French Navy The French Navy (french: Marine nationale, lit=National Navy), informally , is the maritime arm of the French Armed Forces and one of the five military service branches of France. It is among the largest and most powerful naval forces in th ...

Indian Navy The Indian Navy is the maritime branch of the Indian Armed Forces. The President of India is the Supreme Commander of the Indian Navy. The Chief of Naval Staff, a four-star admiral, commands the navy. As a blue-water navy, it operates sig ...

* Russian Navy *

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by Kingdom of England, English and Kingdom of Scotland, Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were foug ...

of the United Kingdom *

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...

Active and future SSN classes

;

Royal Australian Navy The Royal Australian Navy (RAN) is the principal naval force of the Australian Defence Force (ADF). The professional head of the RAN is Chief of Navy (CN) Vice Admiral Mark Hammond AM, RAN. CN is also jointly responsible to the Minister of ...

* Australian Nuclear Attack Submarine - At least 8 planned ;

Brazilian Navy ) , colors= Blue and white , colors_label= Colors , march= " Cisne Branco" ( en, "White Swan") (same name as training ship '' Cisne Branco'' , mascot= , equipment= 1 multipurpose aircraft carrier7 submarines6 frigates2 corvettes4 amphibious ...

* ''Álvaro Alberto''-class submarine - 1 under construction ; People's Liberation Army Navy of the People's Republic of China * ''Han''-class submarine (Type 091) - 3 in service, 2 retired *

Type 093 The Type 093 submarine (NATO reporting name: Shang class) is a class of nuclear-powered attack submarines constructed by the People's Republic of China for the People's Liberation Army Navy. Development GlobalSecurity.org reports that developmen ...

submarine - 6 in service *

Type 095 The Type 095 (Chinese designation: 09- V) is a class of planned third generation nuclear-powered attack submarines for the People's Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) of China. It is anticipated that the Type 095 submarine will have a substantially reduc ...

submarine - 5 planned in total ;

* - 5 in service, 1 retired * ''Barracuda''-class submarine - 1 in service, 6 planned in total ;

* - 1 was in service, but returned to Russia in June 2021 before end of lease 1 more submarine leased to be delivered by 2025 * Project 75 Alpha - 6 planned in total ; Russian Navy * Victor III-class submarine - 3 in service, 45 retired * Sierra II-class submarine - 2 in service * - 10 in service, 4 retired * ''Yasen''-class submarine - 1 in service, 12 planned in total ;

of the United Kingdom Known as "fleet submarines" in the Royal Navy Astute2cropped

* - 3 in service, 4 retired * - 4 in service, 7 planned in total * SSN(R) - First design contract awarded ;

* - 30 in service, 32 retired * - 3 in service * - 19 in service, 48 planned in total

Retired SSN classes

;

* INS ''Chakra'' - leased Soviet Charlie-class submarine commissioned between 1987 – 1991. ;

of the United Kingdom * - the Royal Navy's first nuclear-powered fleet submarine 1963 - 1980 * - 2 submarines in service 1966 - 1994 * - 3 submarines in service 1970 - 1992 * - 6 submarines 1973-2010 ; Soviet / Russian Navy * November-class submarine 1958-1991 * K-278 ''Komsomolets'' - only member of the "Mike" class, 1984 - 1989 (sank after fire) * Alfa-class submarine ;

* (unique) * (unique) * - 4 submarines in service 1957 - 1989 * - 6 submarines in service 1959 - 1990 (One lost, 1968) * USS ''Triton'' (SSN-586) (unique) * USS ''Halibut'' (SSN-587) (unique) * - 14 submarines in service 1961 - 1996 (One lost, 1963) * (unique) * - 37 submarines in service 1967 - 2004 * (unique) * (unique)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ssn (Hull Classification Symbol) Attack submarines

History

Active and future SSN classes

Retired SSN classes

See also

References