Page 37: of Maritime Reporter Magazine (February 2022)

U.S. NAVY DDG(X)

According to the Chief of Naval Operations Nav Plan of DDG-51 multi-year contract beginning in ? scal year 2023.

January 2021, the Navy Operational Architecture (NOA) is This contract is critical to ensuring that Flight III capability designed to “close the kill chain faster than our rivals with continues to be delivered to the ? eet and the industrial base is a resilient web of persistent sensors, command and control maintained to support the LSC acquisition strategy.” nodes, platforms, and weapons.” The NOA leads to the Inte- “Flight III will be an exceptional platform throughout its grated Combat System (ICS), which will “connect sensors, service life,” said Schlise. “There’s no doubt in my mind networks, and weapons across a distributed naval force a? oat DDG(X) is required, and will be the next enduring large sur- and ashore. In turn, ICS is enabled by the AEGIS Common face combatant. The Flight III is a fantastic capability, but we

Source Library (CSL), which “enables baseline consolidation need to look to the future.” and will form the software foundation for the future.”

While Navy leadership is solidly supporting DDG(X), there

The Arleigh Burke-class of may be a need to keep the DDG-51 production line going.

Guided Missile Destroyers

Speaking at a U.S. Navy Memorial SITREP presentation on

The ? rst ship in the class, USS Arleigh Burke (DDG 51),

Jan 18, Secretary Carlos Del Toro said there is a valid need for was commissioned in 1991. It is currently modernized more combat power at sea today. “Perhaps a better strategy with the lasted combat system and is forward deployed. might be to build a few more DDG Flight IIIs to ensure that

The 20 Flight I ships were followed by seven Flight IIs we have the capacity necessary to deter China and do the other with improved systems. The Flight IIA was lengthened to things that we need to do,” before the DDG(X)s are delivered.

incorporate a helicopter hanger for two aircraft. 33 Flight

Congress may agree. The Senate Armed Services Com-

IIAs were built before production ended. The Arleigh mittee said in a report accompanying the National Defense

Burke production was restarted, with 15 new Flight IIAs

Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2022 that the DDG-51 de- ordered, some of them with new technology insertion to stroyers are the backbone of the surface ? eet, providing multi- smooth the transition to the Flight IIIs. Fourteen Flight IIIs mission ? exibility and increasing capability with introduction are being built or approved for construction.

of Flight III and the AN/SPY-6 radar. “With plans for con-

Flight I: 8,184 long tons (8,315 t); 505 ft (154 m) struction of a new class of Large Surface Combatants (LSCs)

Flight II: 8,300 long tons (8,400 t); 505 ft (154 m) toward the end of this decade and the current multi-year pro-

Flight IIA: 9,300 long tons (9,500 t); 509 ft (155 m) curement of DDG-51s ending in ? scal year 2022, the commit-

Flight III: 9,500 long tons (9,700 t); 509 ft (155m) tee believes that it is imperative that the Navy award another

The future guided-missile destroyer Jack H. Lucas (DDG 125) is launched, June 4, 2021, at Huntington

Ingalls Industries, Ingalls Shipbuilding division in Pascagoula, Miss. Jack H. Lucas is the ? rst Arleigh Burke- class guided-missile destroyer to be built in the Flight III con? guration. The Flight III upgrade is centered on the AN/SPY-6(V)1 Air and Missile Defense Radar and incorporates upgrades that provide enhanced war? ghting capability. The Flight III baseline begins with DDG 125 and will continue with follow on ships.

U.S. Navy photo courtesy of HII www.marinelink.com 37

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