The new ocean transport barge built to support the delivery of submarine modules between Newport News Shipbuilding and General Dynamics Electric Boat made its first delivery to and from NNS.

Holland, a 400-by-100-foot barge, was used to transport Virginia-class submarine modules for Utah (SSN 801) and Oklahoma (SSN 802) between the two shipbuilding companies in January. The barge can support deliveries of both Columbia and Virginia-class submarines.

“It can serve both by design, but the demand for it was driven by Columbia,” said John Anderson, NNS’ senior dockmaster. “Proving the Holland can support both is important for redundancy in scheduling operations.”

The NNS and Electric Boat team that works together on the shipments jokingly referred to themselves as the “fellowship of the barge,” Anderson added.

Holland’s larger deck area allows for the shipping of more and larger sections. It also includes design improvements that reduce the time and effort involved in securing cargo as opposed to the older sea shuttle that ships modules between NNS and Electric Boat.

A new berthing area was built at the northwest corner of Dry Dock 12 to support the transportation of Columbia-class modules via Holland. The existing berthing area near the Modular Outfitting Facility (MOF) was modified to support the transportation of Virginia-class modules.