MANCHESTER, Conn. (Tribune News Service) — The U.S. Senate has approved $5 billion to support advance procurement for new Columbia-class “boomer” submarines that can launch ballistic and cruise missiles, a boon for General Dynamics Electric Boat and suppliers of the Groton, Conn., shipyard.

The new funding was included in the National Defense Authorization Act which was introduced in the Senate in mid-July. The U.S. House of Representatives passed its version of the NDAA bill last month, with work still ahead to work out a compromise bill for final passage on Capitol Hill and President Donald Trump’s signature.

The Columbia-class sub represents the largest single Pentagon program today, with the latest Congressional estimate at $126.4 billion to purchase a dozen subs to replace aging Ohio-class subs that were built from 1976 to 1989.

The Congressional Research Service recently noted the possibility of the Navy pushing for more Columbia subs beyond the initial dozen, given the strategic value they offer with “no known, near-term credible threats to the survivability” as cited in a review of the Columbia program last month. Among other advances, Columbia subs are being installed with electric-drive propulsion systems that are quieter than mechanical-drive propulsion on Ohio subs.

General Dynamics declined to comment on the defense spending bill.

The Senate bill includes additional billions of dollars for Connecticut to fund submarine construction at Electric Boat, jet engine assembly at Pratt & Whitney with facilities in East Hartford and Middletown, and helicopters built by Sikorsky in Stratford and Bridgeport.

Electric Boat is aiming to deliver the first sub in the fleet by early 2029, about 17 months behind schedule according to the Congressional Research Service, with the second sub on schedule as of last spring. Construction of the first three subs are spaced apart by multiple years to allow Electric Boat and its contractors extra time to fix any issues they may discover in the assembly process.

Sections for subs are barged to Groton for final assembly after being fabricated at an auxiliary shipyard Electric Boat operates in Rhode Island, and at the Newport News Shipbuilding yard in Virginia operated by Huntington Ingalls Industries.

In addition to the $5 billion earmarked to purchase parts for future Columbia-class subs, the Senate bill provides $3.9 billion to assemble the third sub in the dozen planned for the fleet, to be named the USS Groton on the heels of the USS District of Columbia and the USS Wisconsin. The USS District of Columbia carries a price tag of $16.1 billion, with the USS Wisconsin at just over $10.7 billion and the USS Groton at $10.5 billion.

Starting with the USS Groton, the Navy wants Electric Boat to hit a pace of one new Columbia sub annually with the goal of completing production by 2036. It is a mammoth task for Electric Boat and Newport News Shipbuilding — both yards face a production goal of two Virginia-class subs annually with each manufacturer tasked with building sections for final assembly in both Connecticut and Virginia.

At last report, Electric Boat had more than 15,000 employees in Connecticut, with plans to hire more than 3,000 people this year to replace workers hitting retirement and keep up with Navy demand for Virginia-class attack subs and the Columbia program. To free up more space at its Groton yard, Electric Boat is building a new warehouse in North Stonington to supply both its Connecticut and Rhode Island shipyards. And Electric Boat purchased a portion of the Crystal Mall to build office space there for engineers.

In a statement, U.S. Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-CT called the bill “a serious, long-term commitment to our national security” and to the thousands of workers at Electric Boat, Pratt & Whitney, Sikorsky and other defense contractors and suppliers in Connecticut.

In a CT Insider interview last week, Blumenthal said the Trump administration must adhere to schedules for submarine construction that Congress has funded in previous defense spending bills.

“The question is whether they are going to make the kind of investments and continue the timetables that have been set in the past,” said Blumenthal, who sits on the Senate Armed Services committee. “We have to hold them to what they’re saying.”

Sen. Chris Murphy, D-CT, voted against the bill. In a Friday statement, Murphy indicated his vote was driven in part by Trump’s use of military personnel to support law enforcement in U.S. cities; the president’s invocation of the Insurrection Act “to crush his political opposition” in Murphy’s words; and approving military actions in the Caribbean region without congressional authorization.

“It is wildly irresponsible for the Senate to act like it’s business as usual and green light President Trump’s ‘Department of War’ while he is militarizing our cities,” Murphy stated. “I do not take this vote lightly, but this president views the United States military as his own personal police force. I will not support his efforts to use our men and women in uniform to consolidate power and transform our democracy into an authoritarian regime.”

Other spending in the Senate defense bill includes:

• $2 billion for a Virginia-class attack sub;

• $1.7 billion for Sikorsky CH-53K King Stallion helicopters for the Marine Corps;

• $732 million for Sikorsky UH-60M Black Hawk helicopters for the Army;

• $255 million for construction of a new pier and munitions facility at the Naval Submarine Base New London;

• $107 million to support the Sikorsky HH-60W Jolly Green II helicopter program for the Air Force; and

• 34 more F-35A Lightning II jet fighters with engines from Pratt & Whitney.

Includes prior reporting by Paul Schott.

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