USS Greeneville (SSN-772) is an American submarine belonging to the modernized Los Angeles class (so-called Improved Los Angeles or 688i). Units of this class are nuclear powered hunting submarines (ANN), with capabilities similar to those of the SSGN type. Units of this type were built in 1985-1996. In total, 23 units of the 688i type were built. The Los Angeles-class ship is 110 meters long, 10 meters wide, and has a displacement of approximately 7,050 tons. The maximum underwater speed is approx. 32 knots.
The Improved Los Angeles-class ships are a far-reaching development of the "entry-level" Los Angeles-class ships. The new class of ships, although externally very similar to the previous one, differs in a few very important elements. First of all, it is even more soundproofed and - as the first type in the US Navy - it received an anechoic coating. It also has a depth rudder transferred from the conning tower to the bow of the ship in order to be able to operate on ice pack waters. The units have, apart from traditional torpedo tubes, also vertical Tomahawk rocket launchers. The propulsion was also improved, which increased their tactical speed (from 6 knots to approx. 8-12 knots). The USS Greeneville (SSN-772) of this class was built at Newport News, Virginia, from 1992 to 1994, and entered service in 1996. In the course of her service so far, the ship took part in several incidents and collisions, the most famous of which took place in February 2001, when the emerging USS Greeneville rammed and consequently sank the Japanese training ship "Ehime Maru", killing 9 of its crew. USS Greeneville remains in active service.