Cruise-missile submarine

The U.S. Navy's first cruise missile submarines were developed in the early 1950s to carry the SSM-N-8 Regulus missile. The first of these was a converted World War II era , , which was fitted with a hangar capable of carrying a pair of Regulus missiles. Tunny was used as a test-bed for developing techniques of use for the missile system, before a second boat, was subsequently converted. Starting in 1957, these two boats undertook the first nuclear deterrent patrols. Subsequently, two larger diesel submarines of the were purpose built for the carriage of the Regulus missile, with each capable of accommodating up to four missiles, while a further boat, the nuclear-powered , could carry up to five missiles. Between September 1959 and July 1964, the five Regulus missile boats undertook deterrent patrols in the Pacific Ocean, in concert with the newly commissioned ballistic missile submarines (SSBN) in the Atlantic, until sufficient SSBNs were in service to replace them. From 2002 to 2008, the U.S. Navy modified the four oldest ballistic missile submarines: , , , and into SSGNs. The conversion was achieved by installing VLS in a multiple all-up-round canister (MAC) configuration in 22 of the 24 missile tubes, replacing one Trident missile with seven smaller Tomahawk cruise missiles. The two remaining tubes were converted to lockout chambers for use by special forces personnel. This gave each converted submarine the capability to carry up to 154 Tomahawks. The large diameter tubes can also be modified to carry and launch other payloads, such as UAVs or UUVs although these capabilities have not yet been fully implemented. In addition to generating a significant increase in stand-off strike capabilities, this conversion also counts as an arms reduction towards the START II treaty, because it reduces the number of nuclear weapons that are forward-deployed. USS Florida (SSGN-728) launched cruise missiles against Libyan targets as part of Operation Odyssey Dawn in March 2011. Currently, Virginia-class submarines (Block I–IV) serve as universal ships, both attack submarines and cruise-missile submarines with 12 × Vertical launching system (VLS) for Tomahawk cruise missiles. The future Virginia-class (Block V) submarines with 40 Tomahawk cruise missiles are slated to supplement and eventually replace the Ohio SSGNs when they are retired; USS Ohio itself is more than 40 years old. File:USS Cusk;0834807.jpg|USS Cusk fires a JB-2 Loon missile, 1951 File:USS Tunny (SSG-282) Regulus launching sequence c1956.jpg|USS Tunny fires a Regulus I, 1956 File:SSGN728 030116-N-XXXXX-001.jpg|Tomahawk test-fire from USS Florida, 2008 File:USS-Georgia-(SSGN-729).jpg|USS Georgia underway, 2012 ==Soviet Navy/Russian Navy==

The Soviet Navy (and its successor, the Russian Navy) has operated a wide variety of dedicated cruise missile submarines (unbolded project numbers were prototypes/never entered military service): Khruschev encouraged the development of missiles in the Soviet Union; thus the issues of effective nuclear deterrence and delivery and US Carrier Strike Groups were to be solved through advances in missilery. Submerged submarines are more concealable than surface ships; missiles carried upon them were therefore safer from attack by NATO surface fleets, land-based aircraft, and long-range patrol bombers. Thus the strategic and tactical strike missions were solved through the equipment of submarines with large, long-range cruise missiles: first through the modification of existing boats, then by boats being built for the task. The Whiskey variants and Echo I cruise missile submarines deployed with a nuclear land attack version of the P-5 Pyatyorka (SS-N-3 Shaddock) from the late 1950s to 1964, concurrently with the US Regulus force, until the strategic land attack mission was transferred entirely to the SSBN force. Along with the Julietts and Echo IIs, these continued as SSGs or SSGNs with an antiship variant of the P-5 until circa 1990. The Echo Is were an exception; they could not accommodate the anti-ship targeting radar and served as SSNs after the land attack missiles were withdrawn. Apart from true guided-missile submarines, late-Soviet attack submarines could launch various types of torpedo tube-launched missiles starting with the RK-55 and continuing with the Kalibr family of missiles. Cruise-missile capable Soviet submarines may have a different designation to incapable sister boats (Victor III (Project 671RTM) boats became Project 671RTMK as they gained this ability, K for Крылатая ракета; cruise missile). Due to standardization of torpedo tube diameters, which are 533 mm, modern Russian attack submarine classes (even the diesel Kilo and Lada) are capable of launching long-range strategic cruise missiles from their torpedo tubes, without needing specialized compartments for missile tubes. File:DN-ST-84-01654-Papa class-Oct 1983.JPEG|K-222, the sole Project 661 submarine underway, 1983 File:DN-ST-86-11105-Juliett_class_submarine-11_Aug_1986.JPEG|A Project 651 boat underway, 1986 File:2023.09.29.143258 U-461 Peenemünde DE.jpg|K-24 (now U-461 of the Peenemünde Maritime Museum), Project 651 Juliett cruise missile submarine, with rear SS-N-3 Shaddock launch tubes in raised position File:DN-SC-89-03179 INS Chakra submarine.jpg|Soviet K-43 underway, c. 1987 File:Oscar class submarine 2.JPG|Project 949 (Oscar-I) underway. The Oscar-classes are notably girthy; the very large P-700 missiles were placed outside the pressure hull, twelve launch tubes on each side File:Oscar class submarine 1.JPG|Project 949A (Oscar-II) underway. Pr. 949A boats had a different tail fin which accommodated the towed-array sonar (cylinder visible at the bottom of photo), an easy way to distinguish this class from its immediate predecessor ==See also==