USS Zumwalt transformed to point hypersonics at China

The US Navy seeks to transform the futuristic USS Zumwalt from a US$4 billion boondoggle into a hypersonic weapon platform to challenge China’s rising naval might.

This month, Defense News reported that the US Navy is retrofitting the guided-missile destroyer USS Zumwalt with the first shipborne hypersonic weapon, transforming a costly misstep into a potential potent asset. 

Defense News says that the USS Zumwalt, currently at a Mississippi shipyard, is equipped with missile tubes replacing its twin turrets from an inactive gun system. The upgrade will enable the Zumwalt to conduct fast, precision strikes from greater distances, enhancing its operational utility. 

The Defense News report says the US Navy’s Conventional Prompt Strike (CPS) hypersonic missile system, developed jointly with the US Army, will be installed on the USS Zumwalt, allowing it to launch hypersonic glide vehicles traveling at speeds seven to eight times the speed of sound. 

Defense News says this modernization aims to leverage USS Zumwalt’s advanced technologies, including electric propulsion and a stealthy design, despite the vessel’s reputation as an expensive mistake. 

It mentions the US is accelerating hypersonic weapon development in response to advancements by Russia and China, with the US Navy planning to test the system aboard the Zumwalt by 2027 or 2028. 

Asia Times has previously reported on US plans to arm the Zumwalt destroyers with hypersonic weapons. 

The hypersonic initiative reflects an urgent need to counter rising threats, including China’s Type 055 cruisers armed with Mach 10 YJ-21 missiles and Russia’s deployment of tactical nuclear-armed surface vessels. 

Despite Zumwalt’s advanced stealth, radar and propulsion systems, the class has significant potential vulnerabilities, such as a tumblehome hull prone to instability and the absence of close-in weapons systems (CIWS).

Cost overruns have limited production to three units priced at $4.24 billion each, raising questions about their feasibility as a scalable platform. 

Arming the possibly problematic Zumwalt class with hypersonic weapons may be symptomatic of a more significant capability gap in the US Navy as it seeks to extend the service lives of its aging Ticonderoga-class cruisers. 

Ticonderoga-class cruisers are typically around 35 years old and face problems such as cracks and structural deterioration. They also become outdated and hard to maintain, with the high expenses for repairs and upkeep arguably surpassing their current combat effectiveness.

Nevertheless, The War Zone reported this November that the US Navy has reversed its decision to decommission the last of its Ticonderoga-class cruisers by 2027, opting to extend the service lives of three ships—USS Gettysburg, USS Chosin and USS Cape St. George—until 2029.

According to The War Zone, the extension adds 10 years of cumulative ship service life and aims to maintain operational capacity amid delays and cost overruns in other naval programs. 

The War Zone says this move is part of a broader strategy to enhance the readiness of key naval assets. It mentions this decision follows the US Navy’s announcement to extend the service lives of 12 Arleigh Burke-class destroyers. 

The report states that the Ticonderoga-class cruisers, which have undergone extensive modernization, including upgrades to their Aegis Combat System and other critical systems, will play a vital role in the fleet.

However, it also mentions the US Navy’s original plan to retire these cruisers faced criticism due to concerns about capability gaps and the high cost of modernization. 

However, Asia Times noted in January 2024 that despite these efforts, the US Navy faces a “cruiser gap” as it retires Ticonderoga-class cruisers. Arleigh Burke-class destroyers, the US Navy’s primary surface warship, may also already have exhausted their upgrade potential with no more internal space for future upgrades.

China’s Type 055 cruisers and Type 052 destroyers, equipped with advanced missile systems, pose a significant threat, particularly with the deployment of DF-21D and DF-26 anti-ship ballistic missiles and YJ-21 hypersonic missiles. 

The US Navy’s modernization efforts are crucial but may not suffice to match China’s numerical superiority, as historical evidence suggests that fleet size often trumps technological advantages in naval warfare.

While the US Navy’s DDG(X) program aims to replace the Arleigh Burke destroyers and Ticonderoga-class cruisers, it is still in the design and development phase. 

The DDG(X) will feature advanced technologies, including the Aegis combat system, integrated power systems and enhanced weapon capacity. The design will incorporate 96 standard vertical launch system (VLS) cells and the potential for 12 large missile launch cells. 

In January 2024, USNI reported that the US Navy is planning a three-year overlap between the construction of its next-generation DDG(X) guided-missile destroyers and the current Flight III Arleigh Burke destroyers, aiming to start DDG(X) construction in fiscal year 2032.

USNI says the DDG(X) will incorporate the combat systems, sensors and weapons of the Arleigh Burke Flight III within a new hull designed for expanded space, weight, power,and cooling to accommodate future high-power equipment and weapons.

However, in June 2023, Asia Times pointed out that the DDG(X) program faces scrutiny over its feasibility and strategic alignment amid evolving naval warfare dynamics.

Incorporating advanced but unproven technologies such as lasers and hypersonic weapons in the design may be challenging, as the US faces hurdles in getting its laser and hypersonic weapons programs up to speed.

The DDG(X) may also be incompatible with the US Navy’s Distributed Maritime Operations (DMO) concept, which emphasizes smaller, dispersed units over larger ships, as they risk concentrating capabilities in a single, vulnerable asset. 

Cost-effectiveness is another contentious issue, with calls to extend the life of the Arleigh Burke destroyers instead of pursuing an entirely new design.

The latest Arleigh Burke Flight III models already feature cutting-edge upgrades, but a planned Flight IV variant was scrapped to fund nuclear ballistic missile submarines (SSBN). 

Sustainment and logistical challenges, such as transitioning industrial capacity and replenishing VLS at sea, compound the dilemma. 

Meanwhile, China’s People’s Liberation Army-Navy (PLAN) continues to expand rapidly. With China’s shipbuilding capacity dwarfing the US’s, it now has the world’s largest navy in terms of ship numbers.

While US vessels are more technologically advanced, the US Navy risks relying too much on costly and untested designs, potentially ceding strategic advantage to a numerically superior Chinese fleet.