Navy chief wants new fleet of nuclear subs

The U.S. Navy’s ability to launch nuclear missiles from submarines is “foundational to our survival as a nation,” according to the service’s new chief, Adm. John M. Richardson. Improving the nuclear sub fleet—at a cost of $100 billion—emerged as his top priority in a new vision document released last week.

For decades, the United States has maintained a strategic nuclear deterrent capability, dubbed the “nuclear triad,” which consists of land-based Intercontinental Ballistic Missiles (ICBMs), nuclear-capable long range bombers such as the B-52 and the B-2, and a fleet of nuclear-armed submarines.

But America’s nuclear triad is aging. According to a 2012 Heritage Foundation report, the U.S. produced its last nuclear warhead in 1989 and has not developed a new bomber, ICBM, or ballistic missile submarine since then. Under current plans, the U.S. won’t replace many of these systems until at least 2030. The current fleet of 14 Ohio-class submarines, known as “boomers,” has been in operation since 1981 and its Trident II missiles aren’t due to be replaced until 2042, according to the Heritage report.

The Navy has plans to replace the Ohio-class subs with a fleet of 12 next-generation boomers. The estimated $100 billion cost represents a huge investment, but it’s one Richardson believes is worth making. Both Russia’s and China’s aggressive and assertive reconstitution of their militaries and their “growing arsenal of high-end war-fighting capabilities” signals that “for the first time in 25 years, the United States is facing a return to great power competition,” Richardson wrote in his report.

A “world-class nuclear capability” is required to be considered a great power these days, he told the Associated Press in a recent interview. Without it, “we could be threatened or coerced by another nation who could hold this nuclear threat over our heads,” he added.

Although Richardson’s vision document cited the security threats posed by international terrorist organizations such as ISIS or al-Qaeda, he is particularly worried about North Korea’s advances in nuclear warhead miniaturization, as well as its progress in developing long-range missiles that could potentially reach the U.S. mainland. Those concerns moved to the forefront of the world’s attention with the North’s announcement that it had tested a hydrogen bomb last week.

Although Russia and China are both modernizing their nuclear forces, not every nuclear expert believes the United States needs to upgrade its entire nuclear triad. Some prominent defense analysts, including former Defense Secretary William Perry, believe the land-based ICBM force should be completely scrapped. They say the fleet of nuclear-capable bombers and submarines poses a sufficient deterrent.

But in almost any proposed arrangement, submarines would be part of the mix. They are the least vulnerable to targeting by an enemy and are virtually undetectable while on patrol. Their very presence at sea “complicates opponents’ calculus when contemplating an attack on the U.S.,” according to the Heritage Foundation report.

That’s why replacing the aging boomers, which already have exceeded their 30-year life span, is so important, Richardson insists.

“If we don’t reconstitute the undersea leg” of the nuclear triad, “then we’re not even at the table to discuss world affairs as a great power,” he said.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.