At 3.5 Billion $ a piece, the new stealth Zumwalt class destroyer must deliver.
by DANIEL DEPINA
THE PENTAGON -- By the end of the decade, 60 percent of U.S. naval forces will be stationed in the Pacific—a historic high that reflects Asia’s increasing strategic importance to the United States, as well as concerns over China flexing its power in the region.The expanded U.S. presence will include the Navy’s next-generation warship, the DDG-1000 Zumwalt class destroyer, named after the former chief of naval operations Adm. Elmo Zumwalt Jr. The first of these 600-foot, 15,000-ton vessels is being built by General Dynamics in Maine at the Bath Iron Works, which had to construct a $40 million facility to accommodate the project.
The new destroyer was designed to operate both in the open ocean and in shallow, offshore waters. And it incorporates several stealth features, including: a wave-piercing hull that leaves almost no wake; an exhaust suppressor to reduce the vessel’s infrared (heat) signature; and an exterior that slopes inward at a steep angle, creating a radar signature said to be no larger than a fishing boat’s.
Escalating research and development expenses compelled the Navy to scale back its initial plan for 32 ships to 3 (each of which now costs more than $7 billion). The first of the new vessels, the USS Zumwalt, will be christened in 2013. The Navy plans to deploy it fully manned at some point next year, and it is pre-equipped with the capibility to accomodate their new LAWS laser system which will replace the aging CAWS close-in kinetic defense system. Not only that, but the DOD also has plans to deploy BEA Systems' secretive rail gun, whichis capable of launching projectiles at Mach 7.
The implications of this new ship loom large. The Chinese will obviously trying to counter the Unites States new stealth surface ships, but they are decades behind in terms of technical ability and experience when it comes to building something comparable. They are still trying to figure out how to operate an aircraftcarrier effectively, something we have been doing since World War II. The USS Zumwalt will be able to further enforce the Unites States' foriegn policy.