2017 Year in Review
NNSA’s Naval Reactors is responsible for all naval nuclear propulsion endeavors, from technology development to reactor operation and eventual reactor plant disposal. The program consistently fulfills the Navy's requirements for new and affordable nuclear propulsion plants that meet current and future national defense requirements, delivered on schedule and within budget. More than 45 percent of the Navy's major combatants are nuclear-powered, including all submarines and aircraft carriers.
USS Enterprise
- The Navy has begun early construction and prototyping on a new class of nuclear-armed ballistic missile submarines. After being officially designated by the Secretary of the Navy in 2016, the Columbia-class ballistic missile submarine program passed its Milestone B decision review in January, authorizing it to enter into the engineering and manufacturing development phase and permitting the transition from preliminary design to detailed design. The new submarines are being designed for 42 years of service life and the first patrol of the lead ship, SSBN 826, is scheduled for fiscal year 2031. Because its new design includes an improved, life-of-the-ship nuclear core, only 12 Columbia-class submarines will be required to replace 14 existing Ohio-class nuclear-armed vessels.
- In February, the Navy decommissioned a legend – USS Enterprise (CVN 65) – marking the end of a service life of over 50 years for the world’s first nuclear-powered aircraft carrier. The USS Enterprise was put to sea in 1961 with eight reactors capable of propelling her in excess of 30 knots. The defueling of USS Enterprise’s eight reactors was completed at Newport News Shipbuilding in December 2016. Following actions to comply with National Environmental Policy Act requirements, the defueled ex-USS Enterprise will become the first nuclear-powered aircraft carrier to be “recycled.”
Thousands gather for the christening of the nuclear-powered aircraft carrier Gerald R. Ford (CVN 78)
The Navy commissioned a new aircraft carrier class for the first time in nearly 40 years – USS Gerald R. Ford (CVN 78). The design for the Ford-class aircraft carrier reactor plant (A1B) provides a 25 percent increase in operational availability and in reactor energy. Furthermore, this class requires 50 percent fewer Navy personnel to maintain and operate the reactors, and reduces total maintenance and ownership cost of each carrier by $4 billion. This milestone represents the culmination of almost 20 years of dedicated and sustained effort by Naval Reactors, its laboratories, nuclear industrial base suppliers, the Navy design team, and nuclear shipbuilders.
From left, DOE Chief of Staff Brian V. McCormack, Idaho Lt. Gov. Brad Little, U.S. Rep. Michael K. Simpson, and Naval Nuclear Propulsion Program Director Adm. Frank Caldwell at the Naval Spent Fuel Handling Facility groundbreaking
- In August, the Naval Reactors Facility at Idaho National Laboratory broke ground on a new Naval Spent Fuel Handling Facility. This facility will improve long-term capacity, increase efficiency and effectiveness, and reduce costs for managing naval spent nuclear fuel. The estimated cost of the project is approximately $1.65 billion. Site preparation is underway, facility construction is expected to begin in 2019, and operations are expected to commence in 2024.