The keel of the SSBN 728 was laid on the occasion of the nation's Bicentennial, July 4, 1976, at General Dynamics' Electric Boat Division. The ship was unnamed at the keel-laying ceremony and remained that way until January 19, 1981, when the Secretary of the Navy officially assigned it the name Florida. The initial ship's crew formed the precommissioning unit on July 8,1980. The first shipboard watches were stationed on February 14, 1981, to support the operational control transfer of engineering systems to ship's force control.

PCU Florida was launched on Nov. 14, sponsored by Mrs. Jarcia M. Carlucci. Her reactor was initially taken critical on November 13, 1982 and she went into service and the crew moved onboard on January 21, 1983. The Ohio-class ballistic missile submarine commenced initial builders' sea trials on Feb. 21 and was subsequently delivered to the Navy on May 17, 43 days ahead of schedule. She was commissioned on June 18, 1983, with Capt. William L. Powell in command of the Blue Crew and Capt. G.R. Sterner in command of the Gold Crew.

Both crews successfully completed the demonstration and shakedown operations, each culminated by the successful launch of a Trident C-4 missile. The Ohio-class submarined transited the Panama Canal in February and arrived in Bangor, Wash., on March 25, 1984. She completed her first strategic deterrent patrol on July 25.

August 13, 1986 USS Florida Blue Crew successfully launched two Trident I (C4) missiles during a Follow-on Operational Test.

March 19, 1991 USS Florida (Gold) successfully conducted a Trident I Follow-on CINC Evaluation Test from a launch point in the Pacific Ocean.

As of November 1994 the Florida has successfully completed 38 strategic deterrent patrols.

USS Florida successfully launched six Trident I missiles during a Follow-on CINC Evaluation Test on March 8 and 16, 1995.

October 1, The Florida commenced the third Trident SSBN engineered overhaul (EOH) at Trident Refit Facility (TRF), Bangor, Wash. The EOH was managed by Puget Sound Naval Shipyard, Bremerton.

October 2, 1996 USS Florida successfully launched one C4 missile during the ship's Demonstration and Shakedown Operation (DASO). This was the final Trident I C4 DASO.

May 25, 2001 USS Florida completed the 3,500th Strategic Deterrent Patrol by a U.S. Navy Fleet Ballistic Missile (FBM) Submarine.

On October 1, 2002, the SSBN 728 was placed "In Commission, In Reserve."

December 19, USS Florida arrived at her new homeport of Norfolk, Virginia. In September she completed her 61st and final deterrent patrol, marking the end of an era which began with her first patrol in July 1984. Four Ohio-class strategic missile submarines, USS Ohio (SSBN 726), USS Michigan (SSBN 727) USS Florida, and USS Georgia (SSBN 729) have been selected for transformation into a new platform, designated SSGN.

January 14-16, 2003 USS Florida successfully launched two Tomahawk cruise missiles during an SSGN Demonstration and Validation (DEMVAL) test. The successful flight tests demonstrated that Tomahawk's could be launched vertically from an Ohio-class submarine. SSGN 728 is currently off the coast of the Bahamas participating in "Giant Shadow", a Naval Sea Systems Command/Naval Submarine Forces experiment to test the capabilities of the Navy's future guided-missile submarines. The Giant Shadow is the first experiment under the "Sea Trial" initiative of the Chief of Naval Operations' Sea Power 21 vision and the first in a series of experiments before converting and overhauling the four SSBNs to SSGNs.

April 1, USS Florida arrived at Norfolk Naval Shipyard for the start of a process that will change the submarine from a ballistic missile carrier into the Navy’s latest and most awesome conventional weapon, the guided-missile submarine. The beginning of the shipyard process capped off a 10-month period filled with activity.

On August 27, at around 10:15 AM a fire broke out on the USS Florida, near the reactor compartment. According to the Nofolk Virginian-Pilot on Aug. 28, the fire was put out in 10 minutes and there was no damage to the submarine. The reactor was not in operation, as it is currently undergoing a refueling complex overhaul. The cause of the fire was not known.

April 16, 2004 Cmdr. Gregory M. Ott relieved Cmdr. David M. Duryea, as commanding officer of USS Florida, at Norfolk Naval Shipyard.

February 10, 2005 USS Florida undocked, achieving a major milestone in the overhaul and conversion process for the guided-missile submarine (SSGN) program.

March 25, 2006 SSGN 728 departed Norfolk Naval Shipyard for sea trials off the coast of Virginia.

April 11, The guided-missile submarine arrived at its new homeport of Naval Submarine Base Kings Bay, Ga., completing the sub’s three-year refueling and conversion at Norfolk Naval Shipyard in Portsmouth, Va.

May 25, USS Florida returned to active service during the ceremony held in Mayport, Florida.

May 22, 2007 USS Florida launched four Tomahawk cruise missiles from the Gulf of Mexico to the Eglin Air Force Base land attack test range, May 15 to 17, during its successful Strike Operational Evaluation (OPEVAL). She launched a total of three Block IV and one Block III Tomahawk cruise missiles from a single MAC from missile tube three. Two Block IV Tomahawks were launched less than one minute apart on the first day of testing. In a first-of-its-kind demonstration.

April 26, 2008 USS Florida departed Kings Bay for its first operational deployment after undergoing conversion to SSGN. She will be deployed for approximately 12 months. The blue crew will rotate duties every three months with the gold crew, led by Capt. John Litherland, during the underway period.

July 21, SSGN 728 recently conducted a crew swap while docked at Naval Support Facility Diego Garcia.

February 3, 2009 Capt. Randy B. Crites relieved Capt. William F. Traub as commanding officer of the Florida (Blue), during a change of command ceremony in Diego Garcia. Capt. Thomas M. Calabrese is CO of the Gold Crew.

April 21, The guided-missile submarine departed Souda Bay, Crete, after a four-day port visit.

May 8, USS Florida returned to homeport after a maiden deployment as guided-missile submarine. She is the first Trident-class submarine to transit the Suez Canal, Red Sea, Gulf of Aden, Strait of Hormuz, and the largest submarine ever to operate in the Persian Gulf. The ship also visited Gibraltar and Jebel Ali, United Arab Emirates.

February 16, 2010 USS Florida (Blue) departed Naval Submarine Base Kings Bay for its second SSGN deployment.

March 9, SSGN 728 pulled to Souda Bay, Greece, for a routine port call.

June 9, The Florida arrived in Diego Garcia for routine maintenance and a crew exchange.

January 3, 2011 Capt. Gregory M. Ott relieved Capt. Randy B. Crites as CO of USS Florida (Blue) during a change-of-command ceremony at Navy Support Facility (NSF) Diego Garcia.

March 4, The guided-missile submarine pulled into Naples, Italy, for a brief port viist.

March 7, USS Florida arrived in Souda Bay, Greece, for a routine port call.

March 19, The Florida (Gold) launched Tomahawk Land Attack Missiles (TLAMs), after 8 p.m. local time in the Mediterranean Sea, in support of Operation Odyssey Dawn.

April 29, USS Florida returned to Kings Bay after a 14-month deployment in the U.S. 5th and 6th Fleet AoR. The submarine launched more than 90 TLAMs in support of OOD.

May 5, Capt. David Kirk relieved Capt. Thomas Calabrese as CO of the Florida (Gold) during a change-of-command ceremony at Naval Submarine Base Kings Bay.

July 21, SSGN 728 is currently in dry-dock at Trident Refit Facility (TRF) for routine maintenance.