Conn. senators criticize delay in sub construction

GROTON, Conn. (AP) - Members of Connecticut's congressional delegation are raising concerns over a proposal by President Barack Obama to push back the construction of a Virginia-class attack submarine.

They say the president's budget request postpones the purchase of one sub by four years to 2018. The president's plan still calls for nine Virginia-class subs to be built under a multi-year contract between 2014 and 2018.

Senators Joseph Lieberman and Richard Blumenthal and Congressman Joe Courtney said in a statement Monday that the delay could have a negative impact on the industrial base and submarine force structure.

The spending is detailed in a spending plan that seeks to achieve $4 trillion in deficit reduction over the next decade.

The Virginia-class submarines are built in partnership between Groton, Conn.-based Electric Boat and Newport News Shipbuilding.