First US Destroyer Fitted Out With Hypersonic Missile Capability

HII has announced the U.S. Navy destroyer USS Zumwalt is back in the water following pioneering works to install a hypersonic missile weapons system.

Following the completion of the 16-month works to install the Conventional Prompt Strike (CPS) system, the ship — the first vessel to sport the hypersonic missile capability — will be returned to the U.S. Navy, which is expected to conduct sea-firing trials in 2027 or 2028.

The upgrade was carried out in Pascagoula, Missouri, at the Ingalls Shipbuilding division of Huntington Ingalls Industries, Inc. (HII), the largest military shipbuilding company in the United States.

Two other Zumwalt-class destroyers are also set to be fitted with the weapons system. At present the USS Lyndon B. Johnson is at Ingalls Shipbuilding awaiting the installation of its own missile tubes, while the USS Michael Monsoor remains at its San Diego base.

The CPS program aims to develop a naval variant of the Long-Range Hypersonic Weapon (LRHW), which is designed to work in a similar way to an Intercontinental Ballistic Missile (ICBM) but without the nuclear payload. The LHRW, also known as Dark Eagle, is an intermediate-range surface-to-surface hypersonic weapon. It's made up of a booster rocket that carries the unpowered Common-Hypersonic Glide Body (C-HGB) in a nose cone and releases it at high speed and altitude.

The ships will be able to fire missiles carrying the C-HGB weapon, which is anticipated to have a range measured in thousands of miles. The vessels will have four firing tubes which will each hold three of the missiles.

“In partnership with the Navy we are steadfast in our commitment to complete this complex work that adds significant hypersonic capability to Zumwalt,” HII President and CEO Chris Kastner said in a recent press statement. “We are proud to support the incorporation of the CPS for the Navy.”

The tumblehome-hull Zumwalt-class destroyers are 190 metres long and boast a state-of-the-art electric propulsion system that gives them a maximum cruising speed of 30 knots. They carry an MH-60R helicopter and three MQ-8 Fire Scout Uncrewed Aerial Vehicles (UAVs).

• You can read more details about the Zumwalt's progress on the HII website