Nuclear Anxieties
By James Hall
This weekend of August 2nd, foreign media and social platforms have been abuzz with reports that the United States has presumably deployed two Ohio-class submarines (already on "extended deterrence patrols") closer to Russian waters, while Russia claims it has likewise moved its own submarines nearer to American shores.
According to The Sword of Damocles: Our Nuclear Age by Michael and James Hall (now available on Audible), the United States’ most valued nuclear‐deterrent capability rests in its 18 Ohio-class submarines. Fourteen of these are SSBNs—ballistic missile submarines—each capable of carrying 20 submarine-launched Trident II missiles. Every Trident II can be loaded with up to eight 475-kiloton W88 warheads or twelve 100-kiloton W76 warheads, each functioning as an independent reentry vehicle. These missiles, which can be launched from periscope depth, reach speeds of roughly 18,000 mph and have a range of about 7,500 miles, enabling them to strike targets within 15 minutes of receiving launch orders.
The remaining four Ohio-class boats are SSGNs—cruise missile submarines—are each equipped with 154 Tomahawk missiles that can carry either conventional or nuclear warheads. Altogether, Ohio-class vessels account for approximately 70 percent of the United States’ frontline nuclear firepower, with nearly 970 deliverable warheads perpetually ready to fire within a seven-minute window. Their ability to launch while submerged makes them the most survivable leg of the triad and guarantees an adversary that a retaliatory strike remains possible even after a first strike has begun.
That said, two-thirds of the submarine fleet must periodically return to port for maintenance, rendering those vessels temporarily vulnerable. By contrast, Russian ballistic missile submarines are reportedly capable of firing while docked. The United States still enjoys a stealth advantage—Ohio-class boats are considered nearly undetectable when submerged—but advances in undersea detection and weaponry mean no nation’s nuclear forces can assume permanent superiority.
Extended deterrence patrols are undersea missions by Ohio-class SSBNs to deter nuclear aggression by maintaining a stealthy, survivable sea-based launch platform for submarine-launched ballistic missiles as part of the US strategic nuclear triad.
Operational details often change. Each Ohio-class SSBN is manned by two alternating crews, Blue and Gold, with each crew conducting patrols of approximately 70 to 90 days. This dual-crew system maximizes continuous at-sea deterrent coverage while ensuring crew proficiency and morale. On average, Ohio-class submarines spend about 77 days at sea followed by roughly 35 days in port for maintenance, crew turnover, and resupply. Three large-diameter logistics hatches allow rapid transfer of supplies and critical components, minimizing downtime between patrols. Patrols launch covertly into remote ocean areas without pre-set missile targets. Submarines maintain secure, constant communications with US Strategic Command via very low-frequency links, enabling rapid target assignment and launch orders if directed.
(For an up-to-date overview of the nuclear triad’s composition and status, see the Department of Defense’s dedicated page at https://www.defense.gov/Multimedia/Experience/Americas-Nuclear-Triad/.) (CNN now has an excellent update at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VytpOgHKxiI.)
“The Cold War remained largely cold because rational leaders, on all sides, remained rational. We may now be in a new age.”
Quote from—"The Sword of Damocles: Our Nuclear Age," by Michael and James Hall (Audible, Kindle & Amazon Books)