Arleigh Burke class destroyer
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| Arleigh Burke class destroyer | |
|---|---|
| |
| Class Overview | |
| Class Type | Guided missile destroyer |
| Class Name | In honor of Admiral Arleigh “31 knot” Burke |
| Preceded By | Spruance-class destroyer |
| Succeeded By | Zumwalt-class guided missile destoyer |
| General Characteristics | |
| Cost: | ~0M US$ |
| Displacement: | 8315 tons full load (Flight I) 8400 tons full load (Flight II) 9200 tons full load (Flight IIA) |
| Length: | 505 ft (154 m) (Flights I and II) 509 ft (155 m) (Flight IIA) |
| Beam: | 59 ft (18 m) |
| Draft: | 30.5 ft (9.3 m) |
| Propulsion: | 4 General Electric LM2500-30 gas turbines; two shafts, 100,000 total shaft horsepower (75 MW) |
| Speed: | 30+ knots (56+ km/h) |
| Range: | 4,400 nautical miles at 20 knots (8,100 km at 37 km/h) |
| Complement: | 23 officers, 300 enlisted |
| Armament: | • BGM-109 Tomahawk • RGM-84 Harpoon SSM (not in Flight IIa units) • RIM-67 Standard SAM (has an ASuW mode) • RIM-162 ESSM SAM (DDG-84 onward) • RUM-139 Vertical Launch ASROC • one 5 inch (127mm/54) Mk-45 (lightweight gun) (DDG-51 through -80) • one 5 inch (127mm/62) Mk-45 mod 4 (lightweight gun) (DDG-81 on) • two 20 mm Phalanx CIWS (DDG-51 through -83, several later units) • two Mark 32 triple torpedo tubes (six Mk-46 or Mk-50 torpedoes, Mk-54 in the near future) |
| Aircraft: | • None, but LAMPS III electronics installed on landing deck for coordinated DDG-51/helo ASW operations (Flights I and II) • two SH-60 Seahawk LAMPS III helos (Flight IIA) |
The Arleigh Burke class of guided missile destroyers, one of the destroyer classes of the United States Navy, are built around the Aegis combat system and the SPY-1D multi-function phased array radar. The first ship was commissioned on 4 July 1991. With the decommissioning of the last Spruance-class destroyer, USS Cushing, on September 21, 2005, the Arleigh Burke class ships are the only currently active class of destroyers in the Navy.
The Arleigh Burke class are among the largest and most powerful destroyers ever built, both larger and more heavily armed than many previous cruisers. (The larger Ticonderoga class were constructed as destroyers, but were subsequently redesignated as cruisers.)
The class is named for Admiral Arleigh "31-Knot" Burke, the most famous destroyer officer of World War II. Admiral Burke was alive when the class leader was commissioned, and his words to the plank crew echo in the class' distinguished service to date: "This ship is built to fight; you had better know how."
One Arleigh Burke class ship has been damaged by enemy action: Cole was damaged and almost sunk by an improvised explosive device delivered by suicide bombers on a boat in October 2000 in Aden, Yemen (see USS Cole bombing). The ship was repaired and returned to action in 2001.
The "Flight IIA Arleigh Burke" ships have several new features, which has led some to suggest that they be renamed the "Oscar Austin" class after the first ship, Oscar Austin (DDG-79). Among the changes are the addition of two hangars for ASW helicopters, and a new, longer 5-inch/62-caliber naval gun (fitted on Winston S. Churchill (DDG-81) and later ships. The Japanese Maritime Self-Defense Force operates four modified Flight I vessels as the Kongo class. Three more will be commissioned by 2010, these will be upgraded to Flight IIA standard.
In August 2005, the Australian Government announced that a variant of the Arleigh Burke was the 'preferred design' for the Air Warfare Destroyer (SEA 4000) project in which three new destroyers are to be built for the Royal Australian Navy. The three ships will be named HMAS Hobart, HMAS Brisbane and HMAS Sydney and are scheduled to enter service from 2013.
Contractors
- Builders: General Dynamics, Bath Iron Works Division and Northrop Grumman Ship Systems
- SPY-1 Radar and Combat System Integrator: Lockheed Martin
Ships
| Arleigh Burke-class destroyer |
| Flight I ships: Arleigh Burke | Barry | John Paul Jones | Curtis Wilbur | Stout | John S. McCain | Mitscher | Laboon | Russell | Paul Hamilton | Ramage | Fitzgerald | Stethem | Carney | Benfold | Gonzalez | Cole | The Sullivans | Milius | Hopper | Ross |
| Flight II ships: Mahan | Decatur | McFaul | Donald Cook | Higgins | O'Kane | Porter |
| Flight IIA ships: 5"/54 variant: Oscar Austin | Roosevelt | 5"/62 variant: Winston S. Churchill | Lassen | Howard | Bulkeley | McCampbell | Shoup | Mason | Preble | Mustin | Chafee | Pinckney | Momsen | Chung-Hoon | Nitze | James E. Williams | Bainbridge | Halsey | Forrest Sherman | Farragut | Kidd | Gridley | Sampson | Truxtun | Sterett | Dewey | Stockdale |
| List of destroyers of the United States Navy List of destroyer classes of the United States Navy |
Additionally, DDG-106 through DDG-112 have been announced and awarded. The ships have not been named yet. DDG-112 will be the last of the class and is expected to be delivered in 2010.
| General Dynamics Corporation |
| Corporate Directors: Nicholas Chabraja | James Crown | Lester Crown | William Fricks | Charles Goodman | Jay Johnson | George Joulwan | Paul Kaminski | John Keane | Lester Lyles | Carl Mundy | Robert Walmsley |
|
Subsidiaries: Bath Iron Works | Electric Boat | General Dynamics Land Systems | Gulfstream Aerospace Products: Arleigh Burke class destroyer | Expeditionary Fighting Vehicle | Los Angeles class submarine | M1 Abrams | Ohio class submarine | Seawolf class submarine | Stryker |
| Annual Revenue: .4 billion USD ( 23% FY 2004) | Employees: 70,200 | Stock Symbol: NYSE: [GD] | Website: [www.gendyn.com] |
Further reading
- (Describes the construction of Donald Cook (DDG-75) at Bath Iron Works.)
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