The U.S. Navy will be taking ownership of the USS Zumwalt, their soon-to-be largest and most technologically advanced destroyer, this upcoming week.
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“Sailors’ uniforms and personal effects, supplies and spare parts are being moved aboard the 610-foot warship in anticipation of crew members taking on their new charge,” said Capt. James Kirk, according to MilitaryTimes.
The destroyer has the capability to hit targets up to 100 miles away with rocket-propelled projectiles with superb accuracy. It also is 50 times more difficult to detect on a radar because of its angular shape and is powered by electricity that comes from turbines that are similar to ones that are used in a Boeing 777. The destroyer will only need a small crew of 143 people as the destroyer has many automative capabilities to operate it.
The expected cost for the ship will be at least $4.4 billion and is due for active service by October where it will be commissioned during a ceremony in Baltimore.
Originally, the Navy wanted to create 32 ships during the time the concept for the USS Zumwalt was formed, 15 years ago. Due to the growing cost of the USS Zumwalt, only three ships were created. The General Accounting Office told the Navy that the cost of the ships would rise significantly as more technology was introduced.
The USS Zumwalt was built at Bath Iron Works and is the first one to enter the Kennebec River since 1989. Some of the crew has been working with the ship the past two years so the day the ship is turned over to the Navy, they will be able to properly operate it.
Bath Iron Works is currently working on the second and third ships of the class. They are to be named the Michael Monsoor and the Lyndon B. Johnson, respectively.
