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2mo ago

Navy Inactivates USS Boise After Costly, Years-Long Overhaul Stalls

Leaders say canceling the decade-long repair frees scarce labor for higher-priority Virginia and Columbia submarines.

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NORFOLK, VA - APRIL 15: U.S. Navy sailors walk around the conning tower to disembark the nuclear attack submarine USS Boise during the submarines homecoming at the Norfolk Naval Station April 15, 2003 in Norfolk, Virginia. The submarine returned to port with its 138-man crew being deployed in mid-February in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom. While deployed in the Mediterranean and Red Sea, the Boise launched Tomahawk cruise missiles into Iraq. (Photo by Mike Heffner/Getty Images)
USS Boise (SSN-764) first arrives at Huntington Ingalls Industries’ Newport News Shipbuilding division to begin its extended engineering overhaul in June 2018. (Photo: HII)

Overview

  • The Navy, which announced the move Friday, will stop Boise’s overhaul and begin inactivation after deciding the repair no longer delivered a sound return.
  • Officials said about $800 million has already been spent and estimates showed another $1.9 billion to finish work that was only about 22% complete.
  • Funds and skilled workers will shift to build and deliver newer Virginia-class attack submarines and Columbia-class ballistic-missile submarines.
  • The boat last deployed in 2015 and later lost dive certification as public yard backlogs pushed a $1.2 billion refit to HII’s Newport News yard with completion once projected for 2029.
  • The call fits a broader push to raise submarine readiness and expand the fleet under a proposed FY2027 shipbuilding request near $65 billion, with HII saying Boise’s crew of shipbuilders will move to other projects.