The USS Washington (SSN-787), a Virginia-class nuclear-powered submarine successfully completed its initial sea trials on April 2, builder Huntington Ingalls Industries [HII] said Monday.
The sea trials tested all of the submarine’s systems, components, compartments, and capabilities at sea. As part of the tests the USS Washington submerged for the first time and operated at high speeds on the surface and underwater. The submarine is set to undergo a round of acceptance trails before delivery to the U.S. Navy by HII’s Newport News segment.
The USS Washington was built as part of a teaming agreement between HII’s Newport News Shipbuilding in Virginia and General Dynamics’s [GD] subsidiary, GD Electric Boat. Construction began in Sept. 2011 and started the Virginia-class submarine (VCS) program’s two-submarines-per-year build plan for Newport News.
“The ship and its crew performed exceptionally well. It was truly an amazing process to see the hundreds of suppliers and the many thousands of shipbuilders from both Newport News and Electric Boat work closely with the ship’s crew to bring this great warship to life,” Matt Needy, Newport News vice president of submarines and fleet support, said in a statement.