US Navy Tests New Advanced Weapon System on Controversial Stealth Warship

USS Zumwalt, the first of a new class of stealth destroyers designed for the United States Navy with the radar cross section of a small fishing boat, was launched in 1996. The USS Zumwalt was plagued by problems with the propulsion and ended up being an expensive and ineffective boondoggle.

 

Zumwalt, however, is now back in the yard and being re-fitted as a testing platform for a hypersonic weapons system.

 

USS Zumwalt at Mississippi shipyard. Workers have installed missile tubes to replace the twin turrets of a gun system which was never used because it was expensive. The Zumwalt, once the system is completed, will be able to conduct fast and precise strikes from greater ranges. This will increase the usefulness of this warship.

 

It was a costly mistake. The Navy can take a victory out of this defeat and make them useful by turning them into hypersonic platforms,” said Bryan Clark a Hudson Institute defense analyst.

 

Since the 1990s, the U.S. government has been developing hypersonic weapons. However, recent tests conducted by Russia and China has increased pressure on the U.S. to speed up their production.

 

The speed of hypersonic weapons is beyond Mach 5, which is five times faster than the sound. They are also more maneuverable, making them harder for enemy aircraft to take down.

 

It would appear that a high intensity laser or a weapon with projected energy is the best way to combat this threat. This is why this type of thing is called an “arms-race.”

 

 

It’s interesting to see the Navy use a ship like the USS Zumwalt for a test.

 

The Navy chose the Zumwalt to increase the utility of a warship valued at $7.5 billion, which critics consider to be a costly mistake despite its role as a testing platform for many innovations.

 

Zumwalt was designed to provide land-attack capabilities with an Advanced Gun System and rocket-assisted missiles, allowing Marines to charge onto the shore. The system, which featured 155 mm cannons hidden in stealthy towers, was cancelled because the rocket-assisted missiles were between $800,000.00 and $1,000,000.00 each.

 

The cost of hypersonic weapons is not known.

 

Some critics have told the AP that the hypersonic weapons themselves may be an expensive boondoggle.

 

Critics claim that the money spent is not worth it.

 

“This missile costs more than 12 tanks. It only gets you a non-nuclear, precise explosion in a faraway place. Does it really cost that much? Most of the time, the missile is more expensive than the target that you can destroy using it,” said Loren Thomson, a Washington-based military analyst.

 

According to Mr. Thompson’s estimate, this missile costs more than 12 tanks. This money could be used to build a large drone swarm. A single precision missile is not as effective as 1,000 armed drones, which could overwhelm an opponent’s air defenses by sheer numbers. They would still be able to deliver more-or less precision strikes while also achieving a long-standing U.S. tradition: accuracy by volume.

 

It is obvious that this system must be tested to determine if it works. And it could be done on a ship of low value.