Vessel · Undersea
Los Angeles-class submarine
Nuclear-powered attack submarine class built by Electric Boat and Newport News; includes USS Santa Fe.
by General Dynamics Electric Boat · First fielded 1976
- Milestones3
- Operators1
- Components—
- Programs—
- Capabilities1
- Inputs—
Photo: U.S. Navy photo by Photographer’s Mate 2nd Class Steven A. Zurell · Public domain (PD-USGov-Military-Navy) · Resized and reencoded as WebP; no additional crop.
Timeline3
- MilestoneConfirmed
Lead 688-class submarine named Los Angeles
The Navy’s ship-naming report, printed p. 14, dates Secretary Chafee’s naming of the first 688-class submarine. The surviving report establishes the naming decision, but does not establish the date of the first public class announcement.
- MilestoneConfirmed
Earliest documented public appearance: lead submarine launch
Earliest supported public appearance found in the sources reviewed for this research; not a claim of the first-ever announcement or original unveiling. Earlier evidence may revise this date. DANFS records the sponsored launch of the named lead submarine. The earlier 1971 naming decision remains separately recorded; the reviewed naming report does not establish when it became public. No builder/location claim is imported from the DANFS entry.
- FieldedConfirmed
Lead boat USS Los Angeles commissioned
The latest 10 milestones. Solid entries are confirmed, outlined reported, dashed estimated or still to come; dotted italic entries are speculative. Dates show only the precision the sources give.
Operators1
- USUnited States
- First fielded
- 1976
Cost to the Government
Ships · General Dynamics Electric Boat / Newport News Shipbuilding
Los Angeles-class submarine
Legacy nuclear attack submarines with a declining fleet and significant maintenance and inactivation demands.
Acquisition / unit
Not verified
A comparable unit procurement figure has not been verified.
In-service SSNs
20
Start FY2026 · U.S. only
CRS snapshot. Later retirements and inactive idle periods can change the deployable force.
CRS ↗Program quantity
Not verified
A separate acquisition quantity has not been verified.
Development program total
Not verified
A separately scoped historical development total has not been verified.
Inventory is not availability
GAO documents boats waiting for maintenance or decommissioning while retaining crews and incurring support costs. A boat in the reported inventory is not necessarily available for operations.
Operations & sustainment
Average daily O&S / submarine
$219,700 / day
FY2016–2025 analysis · Constant calendar-2025 USD
GAO historical daily cost for its delay and idle-time analysis; not a marginal daily savings estimate.
GAO ↗Historical annual O&S comparator
$26.41M / yr
2019 SAR comparator · Constant FY1995 USD
Virginia SAR antecedent estimate based on historical Los Angeles data; not a current rate.
Department of Defense ↗Cost over time · 2 observations
Each row retains its original scope and dollar basis. Changing quantities, service life and inflation can change the estimate without changing the price of building one unit.
| Observation | Measure | Amount | Dollar basis | Evidence |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2019 SAR comparator | Historical annual O&S comparator Virginia SAR antecedent estimate based on historical Los Angeles data; not a current rate. | $26.41M / yr | Constant FY1995 USD | Department of Defense ↗ |
| FY2016–2025 analysis | Average daily O&S / submarine GAO historical daily cost for its delay and idle-time analysis; not a marginal daily savings estimate. | $219,700 / day | Constant calendar-2025 USD | GAO ↗ |
Contracts & purchasing · 0 records
Award values, ceilings and purchase agreements have different meanings. These records are not added together as total spending.
No primary-source contract record verified in this review. This does not mean there are no contracts.
International buyers
No international purchase documented in this review.
Coverage & open research
- Separately scoped historical R&D total remains unverified; missing is not zero.
- A platform-specific contract award with verified date, value and scope remains to be added.
- Original hull procurement and dollar basis remain to be reconciled from historical budget records.
- Quantity and cost figures retain their source dates. Historical snapshots are not a census of operational availability on the review date.
- No international purchase record verified in this profile; this is not proof that no foreign operators exist.
Unit costs and contract unit prices for this system, and budget figures for the programs that buy it. Each figure states its dollar basis and links its source; contract values are under Programs & awards.