The U.S. Navy is transforming a costly misstep into a potent advantage with the first hypersonic weapon on a US warship, the USS Zumwalt. This marks a critical shift in naval strategy, changing the future of maritime warfare. This article examines the details of this significant development and explores its implications.
Table of Contents:
- The USS Zumwalt: From Costly Flub to Potent Weapon
- The Strategic Implications of Shipborne Hypersonic Weapons
- Conclusion
The USS Zumwalt: From Costly Flub to Potent Weapon
The USS Zumwalt, a stealthy destroyer, was initially designed with the Advanced Gun System. This cutting-edge system proved too expensive, with each specialized projectile costing nearly a million dollars, according to the Associated Press.
The Zumwalt-class destroyer’s twin turrets are now being replaced with missile tubes capable of launching hypersonic missiles. This retrofit transforms the Zumwalt, initially deemed a costly blunder, into a formidable asset and a test platform for this groundbreaking technology.
Hypersonic Missiles: A New Era of Naval Warfare
Hypersonic missiles travel at Mach 5 or faster, making them incredibly difficult to intercept. Their maneuverability further complicates defense, ushering in a new era of naval warfare. This combination of speed and agility presents a significant challenge for existing defense systems.
Why the Zumwalt?
The Zumwalt, once considered a costly flub, is an ideal platform for hypersonic weapons. Its advanced stealth capabilities and large size make it suitable for carrying and deploying these potent weapons. This makes the Zumwalt a critical component of the US Navy’s future strategy.
Huntington Ingalls Industries, originally commissioned to build the ship, had their initial design plans changed in part by this new upgrade of implementing a shipborne hypersonic weapon. Now this guided-missile destroyer built by the Huntington Ingalls shipyard can be at the cutting edge of technological advances and can give the US an upper hand with national security.
The Conventional Prompt Strike Weapon
The Zumwalt is being equipped with the Conventional Prompt Strike (CPS) weapon. This missile utilizes the Common Hypersonic Glide Body (C-HGB), a joint project between the Navy and Army, offering enhanced speed and maneuverability.
After launch, the glide vehicle separates. It then maneuvers to its target at hypersonic speeds, ensuring rapid and precise strikes.
The Strategic Implications of Shipborne Hypersonic Weapons
Integrating hypersonic missiles onto the Zumwalt has profound strategic implications:
Projecting Power: A Long Reach
Hypersonic weapons drastically extend the Navy’s strike range, enabling precision strikes at greater distances. This added reach allows for prompt global strike capabilities, potentially altering the dynamics of international conflicts. Adversaries must now consider the implications of this extended reach.
Responding to Global Threats: Speed and Precision
Hypersonic weapons provide rapid response times to global threats. This speed, combined with precision, allows for conducting fast, decisive actions in evolving conflicts. The ability to quickly neutralize threats enhances national security.
A Costly but Necessary Investment?
The CPS program carries a hefty price tag, estimated at nearly $18 billion for 300 missiles over 20 years by the Congressional Budget Office. Critics argue this cost outweighs the weapon’s benefits, suggesting alternatives like the Tomahawk Land-Attack Missile offer similar capabilities at a lower price.
This creates debate as to whether this cost can be brought down so it makes the cost effectiveness better versus cruise missiles as noted by Hudson Institute’s Bryan Clark, a defense analyst and former Navy strategist. There’s multiple moving pieces to cost that include a payload module, glide body, and booster, as outlined by USNI News.
The US and the Hypersonic Arms Race
Hypersonic weapons are central to global defense strategies. While the U.S. makes strides, other nations like China and Russia have also made advancements. These advancements by China were outlined in tests conducted earlier, showing other world powers are progressing along in developing similar missile technologies as noted by multiple officials in the Defense Department.
This upgrade allows the U.S. Navy to keep pace with the international hypersonic arms race.
| Feature | Conventional Missiles | Hypersonic Missiles |
|---|---|---|
| Speed | Subsonic or Supersonic (less than Mach 5) | Hypersonic (Mach 5 or greater) |
| Maneuverability | Limited | High |
| Interception Difficulty | Relatively easier to intercept | Extremely difficult to intercept |
| Range | Hundreds to thousands of kilometers | Thousands of kilometers |
| Response Time | Minutes to hours | Minutes |
| Cost | Lower than hypersonic missiles | Significantly higher |
| Example | Tomahawk Land-Attack Missile (TLAM) | Conventional Prompt Strike (CPS) |
The future USS Michael Monsoor, along with the other Zumwalt-class destroyers, are also slated to be retrofitted aboard these stealth destroyers with these hypersonic weapons in the future. The 155 mm Advanced Gun System and the original long-range plan envisioned for the Zumwalt-class destroyers to incorporate these 155 mm guns will be completely replaced with missile tubes installed within their twin turrets with hypersonic weapons by Huntington Ingalls Industries as a main contractor on this.
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Conclusion
Deploying the first hypersonic weapon on a US warship, the USS Zumwalt, marks a major shift in naval strategy. This move enhances the Navy’s long-range strike capabilities and ability to respond to global threats quickly. While costly, the integration of hypersonic weapons provides a significant strategic advantage in an increasingly complex geopolitical landscape.
The decision to place hypersonic weapons on a ship designed over a decade prior without this capability highlights the Navy’s commitment to adapting to evolving threats. This retrofit serves as a potential model for upgrading other vessels with advanced technology, demonstrating a willingness to invest in cutting-edge defense systems. The long-term impact of this development remains to be seen, but it underscores the Navy’s focus on maintaining a technological edge in naval warfare.
