HII has officially begun construction of the 31st Virginia-class attack submarine, following a keel laying ceremony hosted by its Newport News Shipbuilding (NNS) division.
The future USS Barb (SSN 804) is sponsored by Pamela Bove, who formerly worked at the Navy Operational Intelligence Center’s submarine division and at a defense company, where she met her husband, Thomas “Tom” Bove, grandson of Rear Admiral Eugene “Lucky” Fluckey.
It will be the third US Navy submarine to carry the name “Barb” — following the SS 220 commissioned in 1942 and commanded by Rear Adm. Fluckey, and the SSN 596 nuclear-powered submarine commissioned in 1963, sponsored by the Rear Admiral’s wife, Marjorie Fluckey.
Moreover, the SSN 804 will be the 15th Virginia‑class submarine delivered by NNS.
“It marks the beginning of a construction journey, and while it is a journey measured in inches of weld, amount of pipe, and amount of cable pulled, it is fueled by the strength and determination of shipbuilders and our partners working together toward a common objective,” NNS President Kari Wilkinson said during the ceremony.
Virginia-Class Progress
The Virginia-class nuclear-powered fast-attack submarines (SSN), jointly built by General Dynamics Electric Boat and HII’s NNS division, will replace the US Navy’s aging Los Angeles-class vessels.
Designed with improved stealth, maneuverability, and firepower, the fleet will conduct anti-submarine warfare, anti-surface ship warfare, land-attack missions, special operations forces support, as well as intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance.
The US Navy’s Virginia-class submarines are built from Blocks I to V. The program is also moving into Block VI and is planning for a potential Block VII, within the service’s broader goal of sustaining a large force of around 66 SSNs.
While a rate of two Virginia-class deliveries per year is expected, the actual output has been slower, and a 2024 US Navy review found that blocks IV and V were projected to be delayed by 36 and 24 months, respectively.
The Pentagon contracted six small businesses — ASRC Federal, Atlantic Diving Supply, Culmen International, Fairwinds Technologies, S&K Aerospace, and SupplyCore — earlier this year to help get the program back on track.
As of December 2025, the service has received a total of 25 submarines, following deliveries of the 24th vessel in January and the 25th in November.
