USS Zumwalt undocked after supersonic weapons upgrade
The USS Zuwalt has been undocked, prior to testing and a return to the fleet. (Photo: HII Ingalls Shipbuilding)
The vessel will be the first in the US fleet to carry the Conventional Prompt Strike capability.
The USS Zumwalt, the class leader of the US Navy’s (USN’s) Zumwalt class of guided missile destroyers, has been undocked by HII’s Ingalls Shipbuilding division.
The three vessels in the class were chosen in January 2023 to be the first ships in the US Navy that would field hypersonic weapons.
In August 2023, Ingalls was awarded a US$155 million contract to carry out the modernisation work on the USS Zumwalt’s weapon systems.
Related Articles
The future is hypersonic strike for Zumwalt destroyers
Ingalls Shipbuilding awarded $155 million contract for USS Zumwalt modernisation
Zumwalt-class destroyers begin surface-strike platform transformation
Shortly after its arrival at the Ingalls Pascagoula shipyard, the ship was put back on land in order to receive technology upgrades, including the integration of the Conventional Prompt Strike (CPS) weapon system. The Ingalls team also replaced the original twin 155mm Advanced Gun Systems on the destroyer with new missile tubes.
When released back to the fleet, the Zumwalt will be the first vessel in the USN to carry the CPS system, although the Navy’s plan is that the entire Zumwalt class will carry it before 2030.
The undocking takes the USS Zumwalt one step closer to its testing phase and eventual return to the fleet with its upgraded weaponry.
The use of the Zumwalt class as standard-bearers for new weapons platforms is a turnaround for the vessels. Originally, the class, contracted to General Dynamics Bath Iron Works in 2008, was due to comprise 32 ships, but delays accrued and costs skyrocketed.
By 2009, the programme had already cost the US Defense Department $8.4 billion, leaving the class quickly capped at those three initial vessels.
The CPS system and hypersonic missiles will turn the Zumwalt class into an unofficial special weapons group until the systems are more widely distributed across the fleet.
Armed with its hypersonic weapons, the class will be capable of both power projection, deterrence and command and control operations while other vessels in the fleet are upgraded to new and similar systems.
Related Programmes in Defence Insight
Related Equipment in Defence Insight
More from Naval Warfare
-
![Will the US Navy surge production for OTH-WS missile?]()
Will the US Navy surge production for OTH-WS missile?
The USN is conducting a market search seeking additional sources capable of supplying 516 units of Over the Horizon – Weapons System Encanistered Missiles.
-
![How will SAFE shape naval procurement for Canada and its highest-receiving members?]()
How will SAFE shape naval procurement for Canada and its highest-receiving members?
Canada’s inclusion on the EU’s Security Action for Europe initiative is set to enhance the country’s defence procurement strategy with important implications for some of its naval programmes, while Poland and Romania have also secured significant SAFE funding.
-
![Thales wins DE&S contract for portable autonomous command centres]()
Thales wins DE&S contract for portable autonomous command centres
The agreement to provide portable autonomous command centres to the UK Royal Navy will enhance the service’s Mine Counter Measure operations and further integrate autonomous and uncrewed systems into its fleet.
-
![Maritime defence in the Mediterranean faces challenges from vulnerable land power]()
Maritime defence in the Mediterranean faces challenges from vulnerable land power
As an indispensable energy crossroads, the Mediterranean is at serious risk from grey zone disruption. As navies increasingly employ AI data centres, what happens when cutting-edge defence technologies rely on the very infrastructure most susceptible to hybrid tactics?
