The Virginia-class nuclear guided missile cruisers (CGN-38 class) were a series of four guided missile cruisers commissioned in the late 1970s, which served in the US Navy through early to mid 1990s. The ships were derived from the earlier California-class nuclear cruiser (CGN-36 class). They were decommissioned as part of the early 1990s "peace dividend" from winning the Cold War.

The elimination of the Virginia-class (CGN 38-41) cruisers has been criticized. They were new, modern ships; given a New Threat Upgrade overhaul they would have been well suited to modern threats (they had rapid-fire Mk 26 launchers which could fire the powerful Standard SM-2MR medium range surface to air missile; earlier decommissioned cruisers used slow-firing Mk. 10 launchers which required manual finning of the missiles prior to launch). Their major weakness was a lack of helicopters. Economics doomed the ships, though. They were coming due for nuclear refuellings, mid-life overhauls and NTUs, all expensive projects. Further, they had relatively large crews, straining USN personnel resources. Given less need for cruisers, it was decided to eliminate these ships as a money saving measure.

Ships:

• Virginia (CGN-38)
• Texas (CGN-39)
• Mississippi (CGN-40)
• Arkansas (CGN-41)

(This entry includes information from the sci.military.naval newsgroup FAQ)