Page 32: of Maritime Reporter Magazine (March 2018)

U.S. Navy (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Morgan K. Nall/Released) 355-Ship Fleet is the mandate, funding it is fuzzy

BY EDWARD LUNDQUIST

As Congress wrestles with the budget, The ? rst in the class, USS Zumwalt of this ship was a new 155 mm gun with

Pictured above: The guided-missile destroyer USS Preble (DDG 88) ? res a there is at least a bi-partisan consensus (DDG 1000) arrived in her homeport of new rocket-assisted precision ammuni-

Mark 45 5-inch gun during a live-? re that defense spending should grow, and San Diego at the end of 2016 and is now tion. The Advanced Gun System was exercise. that includes growing the Navy’s ? eet. nearing completion of installation work designed to ? re the long range land at-

The current goal is 355 ships, an admi- in prior to activating her combat system. tack projectile (LRLAP), and had an rable goal, but an objective that faces The plan in to conduct the testing and automatic handling system. Purchased many cost hurdles. evaluation of her systems in 2018 and in quantity the rounds might eventually

The surface ? eet (which excludes sub- proceed and achieve initial operational have a reasonable price tag, but the Navy marines and aircraft carriers) needs to capability (IOC) in 2020. USS Michael said that the cost of buying 2,000 rounds grow in capability and capacity. The Monsoor (DDG 1001) has completed for each of the Zumwalt class ships numbers of ships being procured or envi- acceptance trials. USS Lyndon Johnson would equal a new Arleigh Burke class sions would increase as the total n umber (DDG 1002) was 70 percent complete as destroyer.

of ships increases, but the number in this of 1 December 2017 and continues con- The U.S. Navy hasn’t had 155 mm am- story represents current program status. struction at Bath Iron Works in Maine. munition for many years, and while the

The Zumwalt class was originally AGS barrel was speci? cally designed for

Surface Combatants planned for 32 ships. That number was the LRLAP round, Raytheon and BAE-

DDG 1000 is a multi-mission surface cut to 24, then 12, then seven, then three, Systems Bofors are offering a less ca- combatant built from the keel up as a then two, then zero, and ? nally Congress pable 155 mm GPS-guided round called quiet and stealthy platform with active stepped in and said the Navy would build Excalibur with a signi? cantly lower and passive signature reduction. three. Among the many unique features price tag and is already in production for 32 Maritime Reporter & Engineering News • MARCH 2018

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