*Class Name Ohio/Trident
*Number In Class 18 (24 originally planned)
*Length (Ft.(M.)) 560 (170.7)
*Beam (Ft.(M.)) 42 (12.8)
*Draft (Ft.(M.)) 36 (11.1)
*Top Speed (Knots) 25+
*Complement (Crew) 16/156
*Surface Displacement (Tons) 16,764
*Structural/Powerplant Hull constructed of HY-80 steel. Powered by a single S8G natural circulation reactor powering a pair of steam turbines. These provide 35,000 SHP to a single propeller.
*Weapons Four - 21"/533 mm torpedo tubes with Mk 48, Mk 48 ADCAP, Mk 57 MOSS and Mk 30 decoy. 24 vertical launchers with 24 Trident D-5 missiles, each with up to 10 Mk 4/W76 (100 Kt) or Mk 5/W88 (300 to 45 Kt.) MIRV warheads.
*Countermeasures WLR-8 (V)5 and WLR-10 radio/radar intercept relievers, and eight 6"/152 mm Mk 2 Mod. 0/1 decoy/countermeasures launchers.
*Sensors BQQ-5E (V)4 or BQQ-6 passive sonar suite, BQS-13 active sonar, BQS-15 ice- avoidance sonar, BQR-15 and BQQ-9 towed sonar arrays, BPS-15 or BPS-16 (in later units) navigation radar and two periscopes.
*Comments SCB 304 design. Originally planned to augment, and then replace the earlier George Washington (SSBN-598), Ethan Allen (SSBN-608), and Lafayette (SSBN-616) class SSBNs. The first unit if the class was severely over budget and delivered three years late. A total of 18 have been completed. Designed around a payload of 24 Trident missiles and an ultra-quiet General Electric S8G reactor, these ships are virtually undetectable by conventional sonar systems. The Ohios are generally credited with being the quietest ships afloat. Anyone hunting an Ohio would probably require some sort of external queuing, or extreme luck to locate one. They are extremely comfortable, with sufficient quarters and heads for future mixed (male/female) crews. Early units were equipped with the Trident C-4 missile and are being retired. Fourteen will probably be retained through the year 2025.