US Navy has christened its new Virginia-class future USS Montana SSN 794 attack submarine.

According to a press release published by the U.S. DoD (Department of Defense), the U.S. Navy has christened one of its newest Virginia-class submarine attack submarines, the future USS Montana (SSN 794) Submersible Ship Nuclear, on Saturday, September 12, 2020, at Newport News Shipbuilding, a division of Huntington Ingalls Industries, in Newport News, Virginia.
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Construction of future USS Montana (SSN-794) nears completion in the Modular Outfitting Facility, January 2020. Photo Credit: Huntington Ingalls Industries (HII).

The future Virginia-class submarine USS Montana (SSN 794) honors the Treasure State. She will be the second commissioned warship bearing the name. The first USS Montana (ACR-13), an armored cruiser, was also built at Newport News Shipbuilding and commissioned July 1908. She served in the Atlantic and Mediterranean, landed Marines during unrest in Haiti in 1914 and escorted convoys during World War I. She was decommissioned in 1921.

Currently, the U.S. Navy operates three types of submarines—nuclear-powered ballistic missile submarines (SSBNs),2 nuclear-powered cruise missile and special operations forces (SOF) submarines (SSGNs),3 and nuclear-powered attack submarines (SSNs). 

Virginia Class submarines are built to operate in the world's littoral and deep waters while conducting anti-submarine warfare; anti-surface ship warfare; strike warfare; special operation forces support; intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance; irregular warfare; and mine warfare missions. Their inherent stealth, endurance, mobility and firepower directly enable them to support five of the six maritime strategy core capabilities – sea control, power projection, forward presence, maritime security and deterrence. They are replacing older Los Angeles Class submarines as they retire.

The U.S. Navy has been procuring Virginia-class SSNs since FY1998 (Fiscal Year); the first entered service in October 2004. The Virginia-class design was developed to be less expensive and better optimized for post-Cold War submarine missions than the Seawolf-class design. The baseline Virginia-class design is slightly larger than the Los Angeles-class design12 but incorporates newer technologies, including technologies used in the Seawolf-class design.

The Virginia class, also known as the SSN-774 class, is a class of nuclear-powered cruise missile fast-attack submarines, currently in military service in the United States Navy. Designed by General Dynamics's Electric Boat (EB) and Huntington Ingalls Industries, the Virginia-class submarines are the United States Navy's latest undersea warfare platform which incorporates the latest in stealth, intelligence gathering and weapons systems technology.

Construction of current Montana began April 2015 and is the third of the ten Block IV Virginia Class submarines. On May 2018, Huntington Ingalls Industries Newport News Shipbuilding division authenticated the keel of the 21st Virginia-class submarine, Montana (SSN 794).

The Virginia-Class attack submarine is equipped with 12 vertical missile launch tubes and four 533mm torpedo tubes. The vertical launching system has the capacity to launch 16 Tomahawk submarine-launched cruise missiles (SLCM) in a single salvo. There is a capacity for up to 26 mk48 ADCAP mod 6 heavyweight torpedoes and sub harpoon anti-ship missiles to be fired from the 21in torpedo tubes.