James Madison-class submarine

The James Madison class of submarine was an evolutionary development from the Lafayette class of fleet ballistic missile submarine. They were identical to the Lafayettes except for being initially designed to carry the Polaris A-3 missile instead of the earlier A-2. This class, together with the George Washington, Ethan Allen, Lafayette, and Benjamin Franklin classes, composed the "41 for Freedom" that was the Navy's primary contribution to the nuclear deterrent force through the late 1980s. This class and the Benjamin Franklin class are combined with the Lafayettes in some references.

== Design == In the early 1970s all were modified for the Poseidon C-3 missile. During the late 1970s and early 1980s, six boats were further modified to carry the Trident I C-4 missile, along with six Benjamin Franklin-class boats. These were James Madison, Daniel Boone, John C. Calhoun, Von Steuben, Casimir Pulaski, and Stonewall Jackson.

== Fate == The James Madisons were decommissioned between 1986 and 1995 due to a combination of SALT II treaty limitations as the Ohio-class SSBNs entered service, age, and the collapse of the Soviet Union.

== Boats in class == Submarines of the James Madison class: (Submarines marked with * indicate Trident I C-4 ballistic missile conversions.)

== See also == List of submarines of the United States Navy List of submarine classes of the United States Navy

References

Gardiner, Robert and Chumbley, Stephen (editors). Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships 1947–1995. Annapolis, US: Naval Institute Press, 1995. ISBN 1-55750-132-7. Polmar, Norman. The Ships and Aircraft of the U.S. Fleet: Twelfth Edition. London:Arms and Armour Press, 1981. ISBN 0-85368-397-2. US Naval Vessel Register – List of SSBN BALLISTIC MISSILE SUBMARINE (NUCLEAR-POWERED) Class vessels This article incorporates text from the public domain Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships.

External links

NavSource SSBN photo gallery index