[gordner]

They are built a lot like airplanes, and I don't think it would be a huge feat to add hull sections. obviously easier in the design stage lol.
Sammy, I missed your part about gurney bulge or I likely would have understood what you meant.
As to similarities, they do not just stick in a missile section. The goal of a hunter killer and a boomer are very different, and thus so is the design in many ways. The Los Angeles class hunter has a beam of 33 feet, the Ohio class boomer is 42.