The U.S. Navy is converting the USS Zumwalt, a costly mistake, into a potent hypersonic weapon platform. The ship, which was originally built with expensive gun systems never used, is now being retrofitted with missile tubes for hypersonic weapons at a shipyard in Mississippi. This transformation enhances the ship's capability for fast, precision strikes from long distances.
The USS Zumwalt is seen at the Huntington Ingalls shipyard in Pascagoula, Miss., Thursday, Nov. 21, 2024. The U.S. Navy is transforming a costly flub into a potent weapon with the first shipborne hypersonic weapon, which is being retrofitted aboard the first of its three stealthy destroyers.
The U.S. has had several types of hypersonic weapons in development for the past two decades, but recent tests by both Russia and ChinaHypersonic weapons travel beyond Mach 5, five times the speed of sound, with added maneuverability making them harder to shoot down. In choosing the Zumwalt, the Navy is attempting to add to the usefulness of a $7.5 billion warship that is considered by critics to be an expensive mistake despite serving as a test platform for multiple innovations.
The Zumwalt arrived at the Huntington Ingalls Industries shipyard in Pascagoula, Mississippi, in August 2023 and was removed from the water for the complex work of integrating the new weapon system. It is due to be undocked this week in preparation for the next round of tests and its return to the fleet, shipyard spokeswoman Kimberly Aguillard said.
But they provide the capability for Navy vessels to strike an enemy from a distance of thousands of kilometers — outside the range of most enemy weapons — and there is no effective defense against them, said retired Navy Rear Adm. Ray Spicer, CEO of the U.S. Naval Institute, a think tank, and former commander of an aircraft carrier strike force.
USS Zumwalt Hypersonic Weapons U.S. Navy Missiles Ship Retrofit
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