The US Navy Faces a Massive Missile Gap as Iconic Ohio Class Submarines Begin Retirement

The U.S. Navy has officially begun the process of retiring its formidable Ohio-class guided-missile submarines, marking a significant transition in maritime strike capability. On July 27, 2026, the USS Georgia returned to Naval Submarine Base Kings Bay for the final time, initiating an inactivation sequence that concludes a 42-year service career. The vessel officially began its inactivation process on July 31.

This retirement signals the start of a phased withdrawal for the four-vessel SSGN fleet, which includes the USS Ohio, USS Michigan, and USS Florida. These submarines, originally constructed in the 1980s as ballistic missile platforms, were repurposed between 2002 and 2007 to carry conventional cruise missiles. By modifying 22 of their 24 missile tubes to house seven Tomahawk cruise missiles each, the Navy created a platform capable of deploying 154 missiles per vessel. The remaining two tubes serve as specialized lock-out chambers, allowing the submarines to deploy Navy SEALs and other special operations forces while fully submerged.

A Deep Capacity Gap

The impending loss of these ships leaves the Navy grappling with a substantial reduction in vertical launch system (VLS) capacity. Naval analyst Peter Ong has noted that the combination of the 12 aging Ticonderoga-class cruisers and the four SSGNs currently provides the fleet with 2,080 VLS cells. With each SSGN carrying 154 missiles, their departure creates a void that cannot be filled by current replacement efforts.

Military leadership acknowledges the severity of this shift. During a CSIS event in October 2024, Vice Adm. James Pitts admitted that while the Navy possesses adequate missile inventory for current operations, the decommissioning of the SSGN fleet represents a major loss of specialized capability. Brent Sadler, a senior research fellow at the Heritage Foundation, was more direct, characterizing the SSGN capacity as unique and currently irreplaceable.

The proposed successor, the Virginia Payload Module integrated into Block V Virginia-class attack submarines, offers significantly less punch. Each module adds 28 Tomahawk missiles, bringing the total capacity of a Block V submarine to roughly 40 missiles—a fraction of the Ohio-class capacity. Industry estimates suggest it would require nearly four Virginia-class submarines to match the strike output of a single Ohio-class SSGN. Further complicating the transition, U.S. shipyards are currently struggling with production delays for both the Virginia-class and the upcoming Columbia-class ballistic missile submarines.

Operational Flexibility and Schedule Adjustments

These submarines have proven their combat utility over decades. In 2011, the USS Florida executed the first combat use of a guided-missile submarine by firing more than 90 Tomahawks at targets in Libya. More recently, the USS Georgia participated in strikes against Iranian nuclear infrastructure during Operation Midnight Hammer in June 2025 and supported operations during its final patrol.

Faced with the reality of this capability loss, the Navy has pushed back its retirement timeline. While initial plans scheduled the retirement of all four boats between 2026 and 2028, internal memos from late 2025 indicated that the USS Ohio and USS Florida were removed from the immediate decommissioning list. According to reports from The War Zone, the revised schedule now places the USS Ohio retirement in fiscal year 2027, followed by the USS Florida in 2028, and the USS Michigan in 2029.

The USS Georgia will remain at Kings Bay before transitioning to the Norfolk Naval Shipyard in July 2027 to finalize its inactivation. Meanwhile, the Navy continues to explore new operational doctrines that maximize the effectiveness of the remaining SSGNs, focusing on their unique ability to deliver massed cruise missile strikes and support complex special operations missions before they are ultimately removed from the fleet.