The last of the American stealth destroyers of the Zumwalt type went to sea for the first time. Yesterday, August 28, the Associated Press reported that the Lyndon B. Johnson ship left the Bath Iron Works shipyard (Maine) and headed for the Atlantic Ocean to undergo sea trials.
"It is a great honor for us to send this wonderful ship for sea trials on the birthday of its namesake, President Lyndon Johnson [August 27-ed.], "said a representative of Bath Iron Works.
Lyndon B. Johnson at the Bath Iron Works shipyard before going to sea, August 27, 2021
Image source: Associated Press
The program to create a new generation of destroyers was launched in the United States in the 90s and has undergone several significant changes. Initially it was called Surface Combatant 21 (SC 21), later it was renamed DD(X), and in 2006 it was approved as DDG 1000. With each change in the program, the parameters of the ships also changed. In addition, it was originally planned to build 32 destroyers, then the volume of the program was reduced to two units, after which the US Department of Defense allocated funds for the construction of a third ship of this class.
The Zumwalt-class destroyers are the largest and most heavily armed ships in their class. The basic armament includes 80 missile launchers, two artillery launchers and two Mk. 110 57 mm anti-aircraft guns. The destroyer is equipped with a power plant capable of generating up to 78 MW of electricity — this amount of electricity is necessary for ships to power an electromagnetic gun (railgun) and combat lasers, which are planned to be installed on them later. At the same time, Lyndon B. Johnson differs from its predecessors (Zumwalt and Michael Monsoor): its stealth superstructure made of polymers was replaced with a steel one. This solution made it possible to significantly save on construction, but slightly increased the radar visibility of the ship.
