Los Angeles Class Nuclear Attack Submarines (SSN-688) — Asbestos in Cold War Fast Attack Submarines

Los Angeles class nuclear attack submarines — 62 hulls commissioned from 1976 through 1996, making it the most numerous nuclear submarine class ever built for the US Navy — were powered by the Westinghouse S6G pressurized water reactor driving a two-shaft geared steam turbine propulsion plant. The class was built primarily at Electric Boat Division (Groton, Connecticut) and Newport News Shipbuilding (Newport News, Virginia). Early Los Angeles class submarines commissioned from 1976 through the early 1980s were constructed during the transitional period when Navy specifications were completing the phase-down of asbestos-containing materials in submarine construction.

S6G Steam Plant and Asbestos in Early Hulls

Early Los Angeles class submarines (SSN-688 through approximately SSN-718) commissioned in the late 1970s and early 1980s used asbestos-containing materials in steam plant insulation:

• Steam system pipe insulation — the main steam piping systems in early Los Angeles class submarines used asbestos-containing pipe insulation in the engineering machinery spaces where the S6G reactor plant drove the propulsion steam turbines. Machinist’s Mates performing steam system maintenance in the first Los Angeles class boats worked in proximity to asbestos-insulated steam piping during the period before the Navy’s asbestos phase-down reached submarine steam system specifications
• Turbine thermal insulation — the main propulsion turbines and ship’s service turbine generators in early Los Angeles class submarines used asbestos-containing thermal insulation in turbine lagging and insulation blanket applications
• Reduction gear and bearing insulation — reduction gear housing insulation in early Los Angeles class submarines used asbestos-containing materials consistent with late-1970s submarine construction

Interior Construction and Auxiliary Systems

Early Los Angeles class submarines also had asbestos-containing materials in interior construction:

• Submarine interior insulation — the thermal and acoustic insulation systems in the submarine pressure hull interior used materials that included asbestos in early-production Los Angeles class boats
• Emergency diesel generator — the emergency diesel generator used as backup power source on Los Angeles class submarines used asbestos-containing exhaust insulation and engine gaskets in early-production units
• Freshwater and auxiliary piping insulation — auxiliary system piping throughout the submarine used insulation materials that included asbestos in the earliest Los Angeles class hulls

Attack Submarine Operations

Los Angeles class submarines operated as the primary Cold War attack submarine platform:

• Early Los Angeles class submarines conducted extended patrols tracking Soviet submarines and surface groups, with engineering ratings maintaining steam plant components with asbestos-containing insulation throughout patrol deployments
• Later Los Angeles class submarines (commissioned mid-1980s and later) completed the transition to asbestos-free construction specifications and have substantially reduced asbestos exposure profiles compared to the earliest hulls

VA Claims for Los Angeles Class Veterans

VA presumptive service connection under 38 CFR § 3.309(d) covers asbestos exposure in nuclear submarine engineering spaces. Engineering ratings who served aboard early Los Angeles class submarines (approximately SSN-688 through SSN-718, commissioned 1976-1982) and have since been diagnosed with mesothelioma, asbestosis, or asbestos-related lung cancer may qualify for VA disability benefits.

Source notes: equipment-manifest entries (where shown) are sourced from public-record BUSHIPS (Bureau of Ships) documentation, NARA archives, and the public asbestos litigation record. Manufacturer attributions link to documented asbestos-product histories on AsbestosIndex.com where available. Nothing on this page constitutes medical or legal advice.