It is only the second time in US Navy history that the name Utah has been used. The Navy specifically chose the hull number “801” for the vessel as it corresponds to the area code of Salt Lake City, the capital of Utah.
The Virginia-class assembly building at @GDElectricBoat’s #GrotonCT shipyard was all decked out on October 25 for the christening of PCU Utah (SSN 801). EB shipbuilders, the ship’s crew, U.S. Navy personnel and government officials joined both live and virtually to celebrate this… pic.twitter.com/yUOy1YmOM5
— GD Electric Boat (@GDElectricBoat) October 26, 2025
During the ceremony, the ship’s sponsors, Sharon Lee and Mary Kaye Huntsman, jointly broke a bottle of cyser – a mead fermented with apple juice instead of water – originating from the state of Utah.
The submarine was ordered in April 2014, and its keel was laid on 1 September 2021. It is scheduled to enter service in 2027 and will conclude the Block IV subseries, being the 28th Virginia-class unit overall.
The key improvement introduced in Virginia Block IV submarines over the earlier Block III version is a structural redesign reducing planned major dockyard overhauls from four to three, extending each submarine’s operational campaign by one cycle. A total of ten Virginia-class submarines of this variant will be built.
Virginia-class submarines are designed to operate in both deep ocean and littoral waters, carrying out missions against submarines and surface ships, land-attack operations, special forces support, surveillance, and reconnaissance.
