The Navy has begun awarding contracts to companies for new acoustic superiority upgrades that will make Virginia-class attack submarines more stealthy, the service’s program manager said in a May interview with Defense Daily.The USS South Dakota (SSN-790) will be the first submarine to integrate the improvements, which include two large vertical arrays placed on each side of the vessel, a new treatment for the hull and other modifications aimed at quieting systems inside the ship, said Capt. Mike Stevens, who…
