List of submarine classes of the United States Navy

Template:Short description Template:Use dmy dates Submarines of the United States Navy are built in classes, using a single design for a number of boats. Minor variations occur as improvements are incorporated into the design, so later boats of a class may be more capable than earlier. Also, boats are modified, sometimes extensively, while in service, creating departures from the class standard. However, in general, all boats of a class are noticeably similar.

Experimental use: an example is Template:USS, which used an unprecedented hull design. In this list such single boat "classes" are marked with "(unique)".

Pre–World War I

Pre–World War I

Class name	No.	Laid down	Last comm.	Notes
Template:USS	1	1861	1862	First submarine in the U.S. Navy. Purpose was to protect wooden ships against ironclads.
Template:USS	1	1896	1900	5 others were made; only Template:USS entered the U.S. Navy as it was the first officially commissioned submarine purchased on 11 April 1900.
Template:Sclass	7	1900	1903	Later renamed A class in November 1911, when Navy stopped naming submarines. Essentially enlarged, more powerful Holland.
B	3	1905	1907	Last in series of Holland-like submarines. Originally known as Viper class.
C	5	1905	1910	Designed by Lawrence York Spear. Originally known as the Octopus class.
D	3	1908	1910	Originally known as the Narwhal class. Designed to survive flooding in one compartment.
E	2	1909	1912	First US Navy diesel-powered submarine. Known as "pig boats", or "boats", due to foul living quarters and unusual hull shape.
F	4	1909	1913	In 1920, the class was designated SS-20–SS-23.
G	4	1909	1914	Used gasoline engine. Template:USS set the submerged depth record in 1915, Template:Convert. Template:USS was given the number 19½ because SS- numbers were given after her decommissioning; she was between SS-19 & SS-20.
H	9	1911	1918	3 originally ordered by U.S. Navy. 17 ordered by the Imperial Russian Navy, 11 delivered. Other 6 bought by U.S. Navy. Known as "pig boats", or "boats", due to foul living quarters and unusual hull shape.
K	8	1912	1912	Known as "pig boats", or "boats", due to foul living quarters and unusual hull shape. Template:USS, Template:USS, Template:USS, Template:USS were the first U.S. submarines to see action in World War I.
L	11	1914	1918	The first US submarines with a deck gun. Known as "pig boats", or "boats", due to foul living quarters and unusual hull shape. Designed for coastal defense.
Template:USS	1	1914	1918	Double-hull design. Twenty percent larger than the K class. Known as "pig boats", or "boats", due to foul living quarters and unusual hull shape. Considered failure by the submarine community.
N	7	1915	1918	Known as "pig boats", or "boats", due to foul living quarters and unusual hull shape. Used for coastal patrol.
O	16	1916	1918	Each cost $550,000. First submarines with reliable diesel engines. Every man had his own berth and locker. Known as "pig boats", or "boats", due to foul living quarters and unusual hull shape. O-11 through O-16 (built by Lake Torpedo Boat Company) also known as the "modified O-class". Modified boats proved to be disappointing and were scrapped in 1930; Lake went out of business in 1925.
Template:Sclass	3	1916	1922	Later renamed T class. Designed for Template:Convert at Template:Convert, but performed Template:Convert at Template:Convert. Prototype "fleet submarines"—submarines fast enough (Template:Convert) to travel with battleships. Twice the size of any concurrent or past U.S. submarine. A poor tandem engine design caused the boats to be decommissioned by 1923 and scrapped in 1930.

World War I

World War I

Class name	No.	Laid down	Last comm.	Notes
R	20	1917	1918	Larger conning tower to serve as commanding officer's battle station. Fired Mark 10 torpedoes and traveled Template:Convert at Template:Convert.
R-21	7	1917	1919	Designed by Simon Lake. Generally similar to R class, but smaller and reverted to 18-inch torpedo tubes. Scrapped in 1930; Lake went out of business in 1925.
S	51	1917	1922	The S class is subdivided into four groups of different designs.

Interwar

Interwar

Class name	No.	First ship laid down	Last ship commissioned	Notes
Barracuda	3	Template:USS and Template:USS 20 October 1921	Template:USS 22 May 1926
Template:USS	1	1 May 1925	2 April 1928	Unique submarine; mine-laying submarine
Template:Sclass	2	Template:USS 10 May 1927	Template:USS 1 July 1930
Template:USS	1	14 June 1930	1 June 1932	Unique submarine
Template:Sclass	2	Template:USS 7 October 1931	Template:USS 8 June 1934
Porpoise	10	Template:USS 24 October 1933	Template:USS 12 June 1937
Template:Sclass	6	Template:USS 15 April 1936	Template:USS 30 June 1938
Template:Sclass	10	Template:USS 12 May 1937	Template:USS 1 December 1939
Template:Sclass	12	Template:USS 16 January 1939	Template:USS 30 June 1941
Template:Sclass	2	Template:USS 6 October 1939	Template:USS 1 August 1941
Template:Sclass	77	Template:USS 11 September 1940	Template:USS 21 April 1944	USS Drum was only boat actually commissioned before US Entry to WWII

World War II

World War II

Class name	No.	First ship laid down	Last ship commissioned	Notes
Template:Sclass	120	Template:USS 31 March 1942	Template:USS 1 September 1948	62 cancelled
Template:Sclass	29	Template:USS, Template:USS, Template:USS, and Template:USS 8 February 1944	Template:USS 10 February 1951	51 cancelled

Cold War

Diesel-Electric Submarines (SSs, SSKs, and SSGs)

Class Name						No.		First boat laid down						Last boat commissioned								Notes																																			Silhouette/Image
Barracuda						3		Template:USS 1 July 1949						Template:USS 11 January 1952																																											File:USS Bass (SSK-2).jpg
Template:Sclass						6		Template:USS 18 April 1949						Template:USS 21 November 1952																																											File:Gudgeon (SS-567) - Tang class.jpg
Template:Sclass						2		Template:USS 1 July 1954						Template:USS 30 August 1958								Regulus missile submarines																																			File:USS Growler (SSG-577) (30721200025).jpg
Template:USS						1		10 November 1954						20 October 1956								Unique submarine																																			File:USS Darter (SS-576).jpg
Template:Sclass						3		Template:USS 18 May 1956						Template:USS 15 October 1959								First production submarines with teardrop hull. U.S. Navy's last conventionally-powered submarines																																			File:USS Barbel;0858005.jpg

Nuclear Attack Submarines (SSNs)

Class Name	No.	First boat laid down	Last boat commissioned	Notes	Silhouette/Image
Nautilus	1	14 June 1952	30 September 1954	First nuclear submarine; hull design enlarged from fleet boat	File:USS Nautilus SSN-571 -underway.jpg
Seawolf	1	7 December 1953	30 March 1957	Unique submarine; liquid metal cooled (sodium) S2G reactor (replaced with a pressurized-water reactor in 1959)	File:SSN575.svg
Template:Sclass	4	Template:USS 21 July 1955	Template:USS 5 December 1959		File:SSN578.svg
Template:Sclass	6	Template:USS 29 May 1956	Template:USS 24 October 1961	First nuclear submarine class with teardrop hull form. USS Scorpion lost at sea 1968.	File:SSN585.svg
Thresher/Permit	14	Template:USS 28 May 1958	Template:USS 25 January 1968	First class with bow sonar sphere. Known as Thresher class until the loss of the Template:USS in 1963	File:USS Thresher (SSN-593).jpg
Template:USS	1	26 May 1958	9 November 1960	Unique submarine; turbo-electric transmission	File:SSN597.svg
Template:Sclass	37	Template:USS 10 August 1963	Template:USS 16 August 1975	Redesign of Thresher/Permit class using lessons learned from loss of Thresher.	File:SSN637.svg
Template:USS	1	17 January 1966	12 July 1969	Unique submarine; natural circulation S5G reactor	File:SSN671.svg
Template:USS	1	5 June 1971	21 December 1974	Unique submarine; turbo-electric transmission	File:USS Glenard P. Lipscomb (SSN-685).jpg
Template:Sclass	62	Template:USS 8 January 1972	Template:USS 13 September 1996		File:SSN688.svg
Template:Sclass	3	Template:USS 25 October 1989	Template:USS 19 February 2005	Planned successor of Los Angeles class. High costs caused only three to be built.	File:USS Seawolf (SSN-21) (21274044216).jpg

Nuclear Cruise Missile Submarines (SSGNs)

Note: Several boats were converted into cruise missile submarines after construction; the USS Halibut was the only purpose built SSGN of the US Navy

Class Name					No.		First boat laid down							Last boat commissioned									Notes																											Picture/Silhouette
Template:USS					1		11 April 1957							4 January 1960									Unique submarine; Regulus missile submarine																											File:USS Halibut SSGN-587.jpg

Nuclear Ballistic Missile Submarines (SSBNs)

Class Name	No.	First boat laid down	Last boat commissioned	Notes	Picture/Silhouette
Template:Sclass	5	Template:USS 1 November 1957	Template:USS 11 March 1961		File:SSBN598.svg
Template:Sclass	5	Template:USS 14 September 1959	Template:USS 4 January 1963	Ethan Allen was the only SSBN to fire live missile and detonate nuclear warhead at test range proving theory.	File:USS Ethan Allen (SSBN-608).jpg
Template:Sclass	9	Template:USS 17 January 1961	Template:USS 09 April 1964		File:USS Lafayette SSBN-616.jpg
Template:Sclass	10	Template:USS 6 February 1962	Template:USS 19 December 1964		File:USS Daniel Boone SSBN-629.jpg
Template:Sclass	12	Template:USS 25 May 1963	Template:USS 1 April 1967	Redesigned using lessons learned from loss of Thresher.	File:USS Benjamin Franklin (SSBN-640).gif
Template:Sclass	18	Template:USS 10 April 1976	Template:USS 6 September 1997		File:SSBN726 Ohio.svg

Deep-submergence vehicles (DSVs)

Class Name	No.	First boat laid down	Last boat commissioned	Notes	Picture/Silhouette
Trieste class	2	Trieste (DSV-0) 1958	Trieste II (DSV-1) 1969	The Trieste was the first submarine which reached the Challenger Deep by Swiss Jacques Piccard and US Navy Lieutenant Don Walsh in 1960.	File:Bathyscaphe Trieste.jpg
Alvin class	4	Alvin (DSV-2) 5 June 1964	Nemo (DSV-5) 1970		File:ALVIN submersible.jpg
NR-1	1	10 June 1967	27 October 1969		File:NR-1 986.jpg

Miscellaneous Submarines (SSTs, SSRs, AGSSs & SSRNs)

Class Name	No.	First boat laid down	Last boat commissioned	Notes
Template:USS	1	15 March 1952	6 December 1953	Unique submarine; teardrop hull form; no weapons
Template:Sclass	2	USS T-1, later Template:USS 1 April 1952	USS T-2, later Template:USS 20 November 1953	Training and experimental submarines
Template:Sclass	2	Template:USS 8 December 1953	Template:USS 25 August 1956	Radar picket
Template:USS	1	29 May 1956	10 November 1959	Unique submarine; Radar picket; Twin S4G Nuclear Reactors
Template:USS	1	9 November 1962	17 August 1968	Unique submarine; research and development for deep diving technologies; last operational U.S. Navy diesel-electric submarine; Decommissioned 15 January 2007

Post–Cold War

Post–Cold War

Class name	Number of boats	First boat laid down	Last boat commissioned	Notes
Template:Sclass	24 (of 66 planned)	Template:USS 2 September 1999	Template:USS April 5, 2025	Attack submarine.
Template:Sclass	12 (planned)	Template:USS (planned)		Ballistic missile submarine

See also

• Submarines in the United States Navy
• List of submarines of the United States Navy
  • List of Gato class submarines
  • List of Balao class submarines
  • List of Tench class submarines
  • List of Sturgeon class submarines
  • List of Los Angeles class submarines
• List of most successful American submarines in World War II
• Allied submarines in the Pacific War
• List of submarines of the Second World War
• List of ship classes of the Second World War
• List of United States Navy ships

External links

• youtube.com USS Holland
• youtube.com Submarine #1

References

• Public Domain This article incorporates text from the public domain Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships.