Bath Iron Works to install large launch modules for hypersonic missiles on USS Zumwalt
General Dynamics Bath Iron Works has obtained a $20 million contract from the USN Supervisor of Shipbuilding, Conversion, and Repair to procure long-lead time materials for launch modules aboard the next-generation guided missile destroyer USS Zumwalt (DDG 1000).
Work on the Large Missile Vertical Launch System launch modules, which would be capable of firing the USN’s Intermediate-Range Conventional Prompt Strike (IRCPS) anti-ship hypersonic missile, will take place at four US locations for completion by June 2024.
Existing Mk 57 Vertical Launch System modules are too small for the future IRCPS hypersonic weapon, which the USN hopes to install aboard Zumwalt by 2025.
More from Naval Warfare
-
Northrop Grumman’s Manta Ray completes testing
Northrop Grumman Systems Corporation was selected in 2021 to build and test and Manta Ray unmanned underwater vehicle (UUVs). A second platform has been under development by PacMar Technologies.
-
US Navy takes delivery of New Jersey SSN
The USN’s Virginia-class SSNs are replacing the old Los Angeles-class SSNs. The Virginia-class SSNs are fitted with the latest sensors and weapons and around 48 submarines are planned, with a total of 38 currently ordered.
-
VARD and Fincantieri launch Resilience ship family to target Norway’s standardised vessel needs
VARD and Fincantieri’s announcement to launch the VARD Resilience series came only weeks after Norway’s new long-term 2025–36 defence plan.