The Virginia Class Submarine is the first U.S. submarines to be designed for a broad spectrum of open-ocean and littoral missions around the world.

They were designed as a cheaper alternative to the Cold War era Seawolf-class attack submarines, and are slated to replace aging Los Angeles class subs, thirteen of which have already been decommissioned. The Virginia class is tailored to excel in a wide range of war-fighting missions. These include anti-submarine and surface ship warfare; special operation forces; strike; intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance; carrier and expeditionary strike group support; and mine warfare.

The Virginia Class Submarine has a weapons launch of four 21-inch torpedo tubes & 12 vertical launch system tubes. Its weapon comprises of tomahawk land-attack missiles, Unmanned Undersea Vehicles (UUV), Mark 48 advanced capability torpedoes, and advanced mobile mines. The New Attack Submarine also features an integral Lock-Out/Lock-In chamber for special operations and can host Special Operations Forces' underwater delivery vehicles.