The US Navy has unveiled early plans for its next-generation class of large surface warships, which will be equipped to fire hypersonic missiles and powerful laser weapons.
Dubbed for now the DDG(X), the new class of ship is slated to go to production starting in 2028, at a projected unit cost of $3.5 to $4 billion dollars for the initial ships
The DDG(X) will be the largest war vessel the Navy has attempted to build in more than 20 years, and Navy officials on Wednesday revealed new details about the ship at the Surface Navy Association symposium in Arlington, Virginia.
The project hopes to attach two sets of 600-kilowatt lasers - 10 times more powerful than any laser the service currently fields - to the rear of the ship, as well as another 120-kilowatt laser towards the front, alongside 12 missile launch cells, according to USNI News.
It is hoped that once the ships are complete, the missile launch pad can be stocked with Pentagon's emerging hypersonic missiles now being developed for the Navy, Army and the Air Force.
It comes amid a global arms race between the world's major military powers - in particular the US, China, and Russia - to develop hypersonic missiles, deemed the 'new generation' of sophisticated weaponry.
Hypersonic missiles usually fly towards targets at lower altitudes than ballistic missiles and can achieve more than five times the speed of sound - or about 3,850 mph.
The new DDG(X) (pictured)- expected to begin construction by 2028 - includes plans to attach two sets of 600kw lasers to the rear of the ship, as well as another 120kw laser towards the front, alongside 12 hypersonic missile launch cells.
The Amphibious transport dock ship USS Portland (LPD 27) conducts a high-energy laser weapon system demonstration on a static surface training target in the Gulf of Aden on December 14
Sailors aboard Amphibious transport dock ship USS Portland observe a high-energy laser weapon system demonstration on a static surface training target, on Dec. 14, 2021
Plans call for the new ship to host two 600-kilowatt lasers that would be powerful enough to disable incoming guided missiles.
That would be 10 times more powerful that the service's existing laser weapons, which the Navy most recently demonstrated in a test in the Gulf of Aden last month.
The DDG(X) would also be equipped with either 32 Mark 41 Vertical Launching System cells for conventional guided missiles, or 12 launch cells for larger hypersonic missiles of the future.
The Army and Navy are currently collaborating on a new hypersonic missile system, and conducted a second successful test of the system's motor in October in Promontory, Utah.
Potential adversaries, including Russia, China and North Korea, claim to have already fielded hypersonic missiles, and the Pentagon acknowledges that this has created a 'warfighting asymmetry that must be addressed.'
Despite their name, analysts say the main feature of hypersonic weapons is not speed - which can sometimes be matched or exceeded by traditional ballistic missile warheads - but their maneuverability, making them more capable of dodging anti-missile defense systems.
It means whoever masters the weapons first could render their enemy's missile defense systems practically useless.
According to newly released plans, the DDG(X) ship will also trade the traditional gas-turbine propulsion system for one similar to the Integrated Power System found on the Zumwalt class of guided missile destroyers - which uses its gas turbines to drive its own electrical grid that generates more than 75 megawatts of power, enough to light a small town.
The DDG(X), which will replace the Navy's aging fleet of Ticonderoga-class cruisers and eventually the Arleigh Burke-class (above) guided-missile destroyers, is being designed for weapons of the future
The Zumwalt class destroyer (above) is another inspiration for the DDG(X) hull, though early renderings look closer to the design of the Arleigh-Burke class
A model of a potential DDG(X) hull form is seen being tested at Naval Surface Warfare Center Carderock in Maryland
'Capabilities that we're going to need for the 21st century to continue combating the threat are increased missile capability sensor growth, directed energy weapons, which actually require a lot of power, increased survivability and increased power availability,' the Navy's deputy program manager Katherine Connelly said at Wednesday's symposium, according to USNI.
The initial version of the DDG(X) will use the combat system developed for previous destroyers, wrapped in a new hull that would be able to grow as weapon systems evolve, Connelly said.
'The first ship will focus on a new hull form and a new integrated power system. We will use the proven combat system from the Flight III ship so we are designing the ship with the flexibility and the margins to accommodate the future of the Navy and the needs for where we're going,' she said.
The hull of the DDG(X) will be a sleek design based on both the Zumwalt-class and Arleigh-Burke destroyers.
Navy officials envision the DDG(X) as being larger than the 9,700-ton Arleigh-Burke design, but smaller than the 16,000-ton Zumwalt.
Though the program hasn't settled on a hull design, on Wednesday planners presented a rendering of swept-bow that looked closer to the Arleigh-Burke than the Zumwalt.
'We haven't actually locked down the hull form, yet. That's a concept,' Connelly said, referring to the concept art.
'It is one of the many options still in play. … We as the design team, are going through all the different options to see which one performs best for the long-term and the mission.
The US Navy announced last month that it fired a laser weapon to destroy a floating target in a Middle East waterway where Iran-back Yemen rebels have used drone boats packed with explosives to threaten ships. The test saw the USS Portland fire the Laser Weapon System Demonstrator at the target in the Gulf of Aden, which separates East Africa from the Arabian Peninsula.The system used by the Navy's Mideast-based 5th fleet could be used to counteract drone boats used by Yemen's Houthi rebels
Instead of a traditional gas-turbine propulsion system, the DDG(X) will use an Integrated Power System like the one found on the Zumwalt class of stealth guided missile destroyers.
Navy planners are calling for the new ship to have 50 percent greater range, 120 percent greater time on station, and 25 percent reduction in fuel burn compared to current U.S. Navy destroyers.
The DDG(X) will eventually replace the Flight III Arleigh Burkes which are planned to be operational until at least the 2060s - however a new generation of warship is needed to battle the ever-evolving threat, said Connelly.
She added: 'In order to understand DDG(X) and the need for it, you really need to talk about the large surface combatant as a whole.
'Flight III is going to be in the fleet through the [2060s]. So, the threat is going to continue to evolve. And there will be new threats out there.
'We on the Navy side will continue to evolve our combat and other capabilities to deter the threat. And we will need a platform that can accommodate those new technologies.'
The ship hopes to feature 600-kilowatt lasers capable of taking down hostile guided missiles.
Meanwhile, it will come complete with the SPY-6 search radar, which could be expanded from a 14-foot aperture to an 18-foot aperture to increase its search capabilities.
But it's not all about the weapons. The DDG(X) will be able to travel 50 per cent further and will use 25 per cent less fuel than its predecessor, the DDG-51.
It will also be better at moving through the Arctic, which has been on the Pentagon's radar for several years now - particularly as Russia has built several military bases in the region, and conducted a large number of patrol and training operations there.
Connelly added: 'When we upgraded the Flight III … we took up all of the service life allowance on that platform. All of the space, weight and power has all been allocated. There is not enough room on that ship to put a new combat capability that takes more power or a larger footprint within the ship.
'The first ship will focus on a new hull form and a new integrated power system. We will use the proven combat system from the Flight III ship so we are designing the ship
