USS Colorado Named First AUKUS Submarine, Arriving in Australia by Late 2027

The United States, Australia and the United Kingdom have named the first American nuclear-powered attack submarine to rotate through Western Australia under the AUKUS pact. In a joint statement issued on October 26, 2026, the three governments confirmed that USS Colorado (SSN-788), a Virginia-class fast-attack submarine, will be the inaugural boat assigned to the Submarine Rotational Force-West (SRF-West) at HMAS Stirling.

The announcement was made jointly by US Secretary of War Pete Hegseth, Australian Deputy Prime Minister and Defence Minister Richard Marles, and UK Defence Secretary Wes Streeting. USS Colorado is expected to arrive at HMAS Stirling in late 2027, consistent with the timeline the three allies set at their May 2026 AUKUS defence ministers’ meeting.

SRF-West is the bridging mechanism of AUKUS Pillar I, the arrangement under which the US and UK will help Australia acquire sovereign nuclear-powered submarine capability. Before Australia operates its own boats — expected in the early 2030s — rotational deployments of American and British submarines, crewed by their own sailors but hosting Australian personnel for training, are meant to familiarize the Royal Australian Navy with nuclear-submarine operations and build the necessary shore infrastructure at Stirling.

Officials have said the fully built-out rotational force could eventually host up to four US Virginia-class submarines and one UK Astute-class boat at any given time, though only Colorado has so far been named. London’s submarine will join the rotation once its own Astute-class vessel completes a maintenance period already under way in Australia.

The timing of the announcement coincided with the start of a separate US submarine maintenance rotation at HMAS Stirling this week, underscoring that the base’s supporting infrastructure — drydocks, fuel handling and security arrangements for nuclear propulsion — is already being exercised ahead of Colorado’s arrival.

USS Colorado was built by General Dynamics Electric Boat and Huntington Ingalls Industries. Virginia-class boats carry torpedoes and vertical-launch cruise missiles, operate advanced sonar suites, and are designed for extended undersea patrols — making them well suited to the long transits and persistent presence AUKUS planners want in the Indo-Pacific.

The broader strategic logic behind AUKUS is to sustain allied undersea deterrence against China’s expanding navy while Australia builds its own fleet. Canberra has committed billions of dollars to US submarine-industrial capacity and training infrastructure as part of the Pillar I deal, and the activation of SRF-West represents the first visible return on that investment: an actual nuclear submarine, named and dated, set to operate from Australian soil.

Turkey has no direct role in AUKUS, but the rotational-basing model — allied navies sharing access to nuclear-powered submarines through a host nation rather than each state building its own fleet from scratch — is being watched closely by defense planners elsewhere as a template for burden-sharing among treaty allies, including in discussions about submarine cooperation within NATO’s European flank.

Sources:

• Baird Maritime, “USS Colorado to be first US submarine assigned to AUKUS rotational force in Western Australia,” October 27, 2026, bairdmaritime.com — used for confirmation and technical details.
• The New Daily, “First AUKUS nuclear sub for WA,” October 27, 2026, thenewdaily.com.au — used for the announcement date and officials named.
• InDaily SA, “First AUKUS nuclear sub to come to Australia revealed,” October 27, 2026, indailysa.com.au — used for rotational force structure and timing.
• Ocean News, “USS Colorado Named First Submarine for AUKUS Rotational Force West,” 2026, oceannews.com — used for submarine class background and program context.