According to the Australian Government Department of Defense Material Organization, the Royal Australian Navy Hobart class could be just as good as the U.S. Navy Arleigh Burke-class destroyer. The Hobart class is a ship class of three air warfare destroyers (AWDs) being built for the Royal Australian Navy (RAN). Although the designation “Air Warfare Destroyer” is used to describe ships dedicated to the defense of a naval force (plus assets ashore) from aircraft and missile attack, the planned Australian destroyers would also be able to operate in anti-surface, anti-submarine, and naval gunfire support roles.
Planning for the Australian Air Warfare Destroyer (as the class was known until 2006), an AWD Alliance was formed as a consortium of the Department of Defense Material Organization, ASC, and Raytheon Australia. With several Arleigh Burke-class like systems and features, including the Phalanx CIWS defense system, the new Hobart-class destroyer hopes to achieve getting to the American destroyer’s level, albeit a notch or two lower. Clearly well advised and probably properly funded, the Royal Australian Navy Hobart-class destroyer will be the first one for the Australian warriors, while the U.S. Navy Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer is a proven and battle-tested warrior with 62 vessels already on service as of 2016.
