Northrop Grumman Corporation has delivered the first shipset of Light Weight Wide Aperture Array (LWWAA) hardware for Block IV of the Virginia Class Submarine (VCS) to the U.S. Navy. This represents the 19th shipset that Northrop Grumman has supplied for the VCS program.

LWWAA is the only available fiber-optic passive hull mounted sensor array in the market and is critical to the operation of the U.S. Navy’s VCS fleet. The technology is central to the development of future generations of undersea sensors. There are six arrays in each shipset.

«LWWAA gives the Navy a distinctive edge over sensors being used by any other naval force», said Alan Lytle, vice president, undersea systems, Northrop Grumman Mission Systems. «The early delivery of this first Block IV LWWAA shipset continues a tradition of 114 consecutive early array deliveries by Northrop Grumman Undersea Systems in support of the Virginia Class Submarine program».

Northrop Grumman has been delivering LWWAA panels for all VCSs, starting with the USS Virginia, SSN-774. The start of the first Block IV shipments represents the beginning of a series of 10 shipments that will be delivered at a rate of two per year to Huntington Ingalls Industries. Northrop Grumman will provide the acoustic array assemblies as well as all the hardware required to install the arrays on the exterior of the ships.

 

Block IV

Ship	Yard	Christening	Commissioned	Homeport
SSN-792 Vermont	EB	Under Construction
SSN-793 Oregon	EB	Under Construction
SSN-794 Montana	NNS	Under Construction
SSN-795 Hyman G. Rickover	EB	On Order
SSN-796 New Jersey	NNS	On Order
SSN-797 Iowa	EB	On Order
SSN-798 Massachusetts	NNS	On Order
SSN-799 Idaho	EB	On Order
SSN-800 Arkansas	NNS	On Order
SSN-801 Utah	EB	On Order