A civilian maintenance worker has been charged with setting fire to a US attack submarine, causing $400 million in damage, according to a complaint seen by AFP on Monday.

Casey Fury, 24, is accused of having "willfully and maliciously set fire to and burned a vessel, namely the USS Miami, together with building materials and supplies located thereon," according to the complaint filed against him.

He is also accused of having "willfully and maliciously" set fire to and destroyed building materials and supplies located near the submarine.

If convicted, he could face up to life in prison and a $250,000 fine.

Fury will remain behind bars until his next hearing on August 1.

According to the complaint, Fury admitted to having used a lighter to set the May 23 fire aboard the USS Miami, as well as to having set a second fire a few weeks later on the dock, using alcohol-infused wet wipes.

Fury suffered from depression and was admitted to a psychiatric hospital shortly after the second fire, the document continued.

The USS Miami was at the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard in Maine for maintenance and improvements, when the fire erupted on May 23.

It took firefighters 12 hours to put out the blaze and left most of the front of the vessel destroyed, causing some $400 million in damage.

On June 16, a second fire was ignited on the dock where the submarine was berthed, but this was extinguished quickly without causing much damage.

The USS Miami had carried out a five-month mission from July to December 2011 in the Mediterranean region.