1979 USS PHOENIX. The Los Angeles class of nuclear- I powered attack submarines became the US Navys standard type - and that by which others were judged - in the 1 970s, when the threat from Soviet ballistic missile submarines was at its height.
UP TO SPEED
In the earlier classes of nuclear-powered attack submarines, particularly the Thresher/Permits and the Sturgeons, the US Navy had had to settle for lower and lower maximum speeds as the 55W reactors struggled to keep up with greater and greater displacements (4300 tons in the former class, 4800 tons in the latter), but this shortcoming was overcome with the introduction of the 56W pressurised water-cooled reactor in the Los Angeles class, which restored submerged speed to 30 knots even on a displacement of almost 7000 tons. USS Phoenix (SSN 702) was the 15th boat of the class to be constructed, by General Dynamics Electric Boat Division at Groton, Connecticut. Laid down on 30 July 1977, she was launched on 8 December 1979 and commissioned on 19 December 1981. She was stood down from active duty on 1 October 1997, and stricken, to be disposed of by submarine recycling, on 29 July 1998. The only major modification to the hull saw the diving planes moved from the sail to the bow and made retractable, so that they could surface through ice; the new arrangement was first filled to SSN 751, USS San Juan.
THE WEAPONS OF THE LOS ANGELES CLASS
The class was equipped with four torpedo tubes amidships, though these are probably better described as weapons deployment tubes, since Mark 48 active/passive/wire-guided torpedoes were only one of the weapons they were used to launch; in addition, they could be loaded with UGM-84 Sub-Harpoon anti-ship missiles and (from SSN 701, USS La Jolla, onwards) with submarine-launched Tomahawk cruise missiles (though since SSN 71 9, USS Providence, boats of the class were additionally fitted with vertical launch tubes for Tomahawk).
TECHNICAL DATA
Type: Nuclear-powered attack submarine
Machinery: 1 shaft 2 steam turbines powered by S6G reactor, giving a total of 35,000shp
Dimensions: Length, 109.7m (360ft); beam, 10m (33ft)
Displacement: 6080t surface, 6925t submerged
Draught: 9.8m (32.3ff)
Complement: 127
