Ethan Allen Class Submarine
The Ethan Allen class of fleet ballistic missile submarine was an evolutionary development from the George Washington class. The Ethan Allen, together with the George Washington, Lafayette, James Madison, and Benjamin Franklin classes comprise the "41 for Freedom."
Rather than being designed as Skipjack class attack submarines with a missile compartment added, the Ethan Allens were designed from scratch as Fleet Balistic Missile (FBM) submarines carrying the Polaris A-2 missile. In the early and mid-1970s, they were upgraded to Polaris A3s. Because they could not be modified to carry the larger diameter Poseidon missile, in the early 1980s they were refitted as SSNs (attack submarines) — fire control systems were removed and the missile tubes were filled with concrete. Two were further converted to carry SEALs, accommodating 67 troops each. The Ethan Allen class submarines were decommissioned between 1983 and 1992. All have now been broken up.
Read more about Ethan Allen Class Submarine: Boats, In Fiction
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