By Geoff Fein
The USS Florida (SSGN-728) just wrapped up her first Atlantic Fleet East Coast SSGN deployment cycle and will undergo a three-month maintenance availability in preparation for her next 12- to 13-month tour, according to the Florida Gold Crew Commanding Officer.
The Florida is one of four former Ohio-class ballistic missile submarines converted to a new class of guided-missile boats capable of deploying special operations forces and their gear, along with a variety of other systems.
Capt. Tom Calabrese last commanded the USS Michigan when it was still known as SSBN-727. The Michigan (SSGN-727) has since joined the Ohio (SSGN-726), Georgia (SSGN- 729) and Florida to become the Ohio-class SSGNs.
His last four months on the Michigan overlapped the boat’s conversion to a SSGN at Puget Sound Naval Shipyard, Wash.
The changes the conversion process brings to the new submarine is “phenomenal,” Calabrese told Defense Daily yesterday.
“You take this SSBN platform…the Trident hull…refuel the ship and then convert it to this SSGN guided-missile submarine concept. The transition has been significant and the results phenomenal,” he said.
One of the bigger changes is the sonar system, Calabrese said.
“You took the old system off the SSBN and put on this…ARCI (Acoustic Rapid Commercial-off-the-shelf Insertion). We have an ARCI Phase 4 sonar suite. It’s just a tremendous upgrade from the previous existing sonar suite,” he said. “It puts us on par with the SSN or better than the SSNs.”
Another change is the BYG-1 fire control system, Calabrese pointed out. “It is a robust, dynamic system.”
The BYG-1 along with the ARCI Phase 4 sonar suite “make it a heck of a lot more effective to detect, localize and then to track contacts of interest,” Calabrese said.
But the technology is only as good as the people operating it, he added.
“You can put all of the newest technology on any platform you want but until you train your people and bring your people up right, the system is not going to be very effective,” Calabrese said. “We’ve done that. We’ve got the advancements in the sonar and fire control suite, but we have also trained up our folks so that the people can effectively employ those sonar and fire control systems.”
Calabrese said the sonar techs and fire control techs say adding the BYG-1 fire control system and the ARCI Phase 4 validate these leading edge technology systems.
“They want to work on systems, do maintenance on systems, and operate systems that are leading edge technology. And for us in the submarine force, this ARCI Phase 4 and BYG-1 are leading edge,” he added. “When you talk about quality of life for these guys, it improved in regards to…the maintenance is easier for these systems, and then to operate these systems…I won’t say they are easier but they are more intuitive.”
Calabrese himself had never operated with either the ARCI Phase 4 sonar system or the BYG-1 fire control system. “To say they are robust and dynamic is an understatement. The capabilities and capacity of those systems is much more than I thought it would be.”
“Combined with the Tomahawk tactical weapons system that we have on board, once again much more robust than what the SSNs have,” he noted. “On Florida we went out with 105 Tomahawk missiles. We can go out to sea with up to 154 Tomahawk cruise missiles.”
The ability to carry up to 154 Tomahawk cruise missiles meant the SSGNs needed a robust system to handle that increase in payload, Calabrese said. “This is the Tactical Tomahawk Weapon Control System. That thing is also extremely robust, and I was very happy to find out it was a very capable system that allowed us to manage that many Tomahawk cruise missiles.”
Florida, like its SSGN counterparts, has 24 missiles tubes. Tubes one and two are the lockout chambers dedicated for use by special operations forces (SOF). Tubes three through 24, each with the ability to carry up to seven Tomahawk cruise missiles, provides a formidable capability, he added.
“You may not go to sea with up to 154 [Tomahawks]. For those tubes that don’t have Tomahawks, besides tubes one and two, you could have ordnance…tons of ordnance for use by special operations forces. You can also have some of the tubes used for stowage for SOF gear. There are also some experimental tubes,” Calabrese said.
Florida can carry up to 66 SOF, and Calabrese noted even more if need be. “We have the berthing…as simple as this may sound, we have the showers for them, we’ve got the galley…it’s a higher capability so we can feed that many folks on a routine basis. We have exercise equipment on board for them to work out,” he added.
Additionally, Florida has the Battle Management Center, Calabrese said.
“It was the old navigation center on SSBN that was converted to the Battle Management Center and basically it is the location on board the SSGN where joint operational commanders coordinate with off-ship intel analysts and also communicate with special operations force commanders and their troops,” he said. “We could also use it for strike planning, coordination with the SOF commanders and other targeting information we can do from the Battle Management Center. That, in and by itself, is a great asset. That helps with this sustainability of SOF forces.”
What enables the Battle Management Center to be so capable is the improved communications suite that is on the SSGNs.
“The CSRR–common submarine radio room–that is also a robust communications suite that is a significant improvements over SSBN…on par and better than SSNs and that’s what allows us to have this phenomenal communications suite to allow us to employ our payload if we have to, and also do some of those things from the Battle Management Center, which is communicate with the SOF folks and off-ship intel analysts.”