Skate-class submarine

	USS Skate with an ice pack behind her
Class overview
Name	Skate class
Builders	General Dynamics Electric Boat; Portsmouth Naval Shipyard; Mare Island Naval Shipyard;
Operators	United States Navy
Preceded by	USS Nautilus (SSN-571); USS Seawolf (SSN-575); Tang class; USS Darter (SS-576);
Succeeded by	Skipjack class; Barbel class;
Built	1955–1959
In commission	1957–1989
Completed	4
Retired	4
General characteristics
Type	Nuclear submarine
Displacement	2,250 long tons (2,290 t) surfaced; 2,850 long tons (2,900 t) submerged;
Length	267 ft 7 in (81.56 m)
Beam	25 ft (7.6 m)
Draft	21 ft 3 in (6.48 m)
Propulsion	S3W nuclear reactor in S3W or S4W plant, geared steam turbines, two shafts, 6,600 shp (4,900 kW)
Speed	18 kn (33 km/h; 21 mph) surfaced; 22 kn (41 km/h; 25 mph) submerged;
Test depth	700 ft (210 m)
Complement	84 officers and men
Armament	8 × 21 inch (533 mm) torpedo tubes (6 forward, 2 aft); 22 torpedoes (18 forward, 4 aft);

The Skate-class submarines were the United States Navy's first production run of nuclear-powered submarines. They were an evolution of the Tang class in everything except their propulsion plants, which were based on the operational prototype USS Nautilus. The four Skate class boats re-introduced stern torpedo tubes. Although among the smallest nuclear-powered attack submarines ever built, the Skate class served for many years, with the last being decommissioned in 1989. USS Skate was the first submarine to surface at the North Pole, on 17 March 1959.

Skate and Sargo were built with the S3W reactor, Swordfish and Seadragon also had the S3W reactor in the S4W reactor plant (same machinery in an alternate arrangement).

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