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Further Reading

DDG-1000 Zumwalt / DD(X)
Multi-Mission Surface Combatant
Future Surface Combatant

On 22 July 2008 Members of Maine's congressional delegation said that the Navy had decided to build only two of the advanced DDG-1000 Zumwalt destroyers. Two ships are already on order from Northrop Grumman Corp.'s Ingalls shipyard in Pascagoula and Bath Iron Works in Maine. The administration had requested about $2.5 billion in fiscal 2009 to buy a third DDG-1000. On 14 July 2009 it had been reported that the service wanted to end production of the DDG-1000 after just two ships. Inside the Navy, a trade publication, reported that navy leaders wanted now prefer to buy 11 more DDG-51 destroyers, an older, less capable and less expensive ship. The unit cost of the DDG-51 is about half that of the DDG-1000.

In this context, the status of the CG(X) Next Generation Cruiser, which was to have been a missile-defense variant of the DDG-1000, or the CGN(X) Nuclear Guided Missile Cruiser, remained unclear. It also raises larger questions about the viability of STOM - Ship-to-Objective Maneuver and 1996 - OMFTS - Operational Maneuver from the Sea, along with the host of other programs that have been justified under these doctrinal constructs.

This would mark the second time this program had been cancelled. On 01 November 2001 the Navy announced that it would issue a revised Request for Proposal (RFP) for the Future Surface Combatant Program. Formerly known as DD 21, the program will now be called "DD(X)" to more accurately reflect the program purpose. The new "downsized" destroyer was slated to displace 12,000 tons, instead of the 16,000 tons planned for the DD 21. This did not happen, and within a few years the DDG-1000 Zumwalt had re-emerged, little changed from the DD-21 Zumwalt.

On 19 August 2008 it was reported that the Navy had changed course yet again and decided to build a third DDG 1000 destroyer, at Bath Iron Works. Maine Senator Susan Collins, a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, said that Navy Secretary Donald Winter had informed her of the decision. The move came only a month after the Navy announced it would cap the Zumwalt program at two ships. The Senate had authorized $2.6 billion in funding for a third ship, while the House of Representatives had eliminated the money from its version of the defense appropriations bill.

Deputy Defense Secretary Gordon England indicated in a letter to Collins that the shift was due in part to concerns about disruption in the nation's shipbuilding base. "This plan will provide stability of the industrial base and continue the development of advanced surface ship technologies such as radar systems, stealth, magnetic and acoustic quieting, and automated damage control," England wrote.

Sen. Collins stated that Secretary Winter had told her that Navy also planned funding of long lead time items to restart production of the DDG-51. The Navy had announced plans to restart the DDG 51-line with one ship in 2010, two in 2011, one in 2012, two in 2013 and one each in 2014 and 2015.

The DDG-1000 is the primary development program for the Navy's Family of Ships (FoS) strategy. Eliminating the authorization for funding the DDG-1000 class in this bill could dramatically increase the cost of current and future Navy shipbuilding programs, including the next generation cruiser, CG(X). Additionally, the industrial base that is so vital to our transition to a 21st century fleet of surface combatants could be decimated. There are more than 10,000 skilled workers in the U.S. working on the Mission Systems Equipment that is intended to support not only DDG-1000, but the entire Family of Ships. It will be extremely difficult and costly to reconstitute this workforce in the future.

Sustaining this program lays the groundwork for the Navy's long standing plan, which includes the transition from this new destroyer to the next generation cruiser, CG(X), using the ZUMWALT hull and systems. Funding the third ship in the ZUMWALT Class is essential in FY09 to avoid the potential cost and long-term schedule implications of a break in production.

Restarting procurement of the DDG-51 could have unforeseen costs that could negate the perceived financial benefit of returning to the older class of ship. The Chief of Naval Operations submitted the request for the DDG-1000 and clearly stated the Navy's need to build a total of 7 ships of this class. The Navy has ensured that the ten key technologies incorporated into this new ship class have been well tested and their performance verified, and the ship design prior to start of construction will be more mature than that for any other surface combatant ship -- indicators that the Navy well understands the program's costs. The Navy and Congress have supported this critical multi-purpose ship for fleet operations as a result of rigorous review, engineering development model risk reduction, computer-aided design, significant research and development investment, and updated cost modeling.

This ship is designed to provide critical capabilities to defeat current and future evolving threats. DDG-1000 has been designed to carry out Navy missions while putting half as many sailors at risk when compared to the ships the Navy currently has to do complete these missions. It is designed for higher operational tempo and lower life-cycle costs than current Navy destroyers.

Led by Sen. Edward Kennedy, D-Mass., in July 2008 a group of lawmakers from Massachusetts and Rhode Island had urged Defense Secretary Robert Gates to reconsider the Navy's plans to buy only two DDG 1000 destroyers. On 25 July 2008 Senator Edward M. Kennedy released regarding a letter from Under Secretary John J. Young, Jr., which detailed the benefits of the DDG 1000 destroyer."Under Secretary Young's letter clearly argues against the Navy's plan to cancel the DDG-1000 program. The data Secretary Young provides shows the folly of abandoning the DDG-1000 program to build more DDG-51's. It could cost the Navy over $4 billion to halt production of DDG-1000s at two ships. Even more important, as Under Secretary Young's letter emphasizes, the DDG-1000 has significant advantages over the DDG-51 on certain missions. The Navy needs both types of destroyers and it would be a serious mistake not to continue DDG-1000 production."

On July 23, 2008 U.S. Senator Olympia J. Snowe (R-Maine) met with U.S. Navy Secretary Donald Winter and Chief of Naval Operations Admiral Gary Roughead about the Navy's proposal to limit the construction of the number of DDG 1000 Zumwalt-class destroyers to two ships. "Just as I told BIW President Dugan Shipway in a separate meeting this morning, I made clear to Navy leadership this afternoon that I will move heaven and earth to ensure the man hours promised to BIW through the DDG 1000 program remain equivalent under this new proposal - after all, the men and women of BIW have worked tirelessly to make BIW an indispensable national asset, providing the Navy and our nation with model efficiency and workmanship - and it is also critical we maintain our country's industrial shipbuilding capability."

Snowe went on to say, "I was surprised and deeply dismayed to learn of the Navy's proposal, especially as - from the time I Chaired the Senate Seapower subcommittee and held eight hearings on the successor to the DDG-51 and visited personally with Navy commanders in the Persian Gulf in 1999 - Navy officials have repeatedly testified to the necessity of the DDG-1000. In meeting after meeting, Navy officials over the years demanded a destroyer capable of successfully defending the Nation's interests in the 21st Century, and the professionals of BIW stepped up to the challenge in winning the DDG 1000 contract and producing a quality product on-time and on-budget.

"For years, Navy leadership has advanced the DDG-1000 as much more capable than the DDG-51 in the littoral or coastal regions of the world, where more than 80 percent of the planet's population lives. It was clear that the world's Number One Navy had an increasing strategic focus on the littorals, the threats to maritime forces in the littorals, and the capabilities that would be provided by the DDG 1000. Indeed, Navy leadership testified in support of the DDG 1000 before Congress as recently as this year. Admiral Roughead, in testimony, said the DDG 1000 will 'provide independent forward presence and deterrence and it will operate as an integral part of joint and combined expeditionary forces.'

On July 14, 2008 Senator Susan Collins, a Member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, commented on the news report that the Navy plans to discontinue the Zumwalt Class DDG-1000 program: "The decision by the House Armed Services Committee to slash funding for the DDG-1000 has triggered a review within the Department of Defense on the future of the new destroyer. During the past several weeks, I have had extensive discussions with the Chief of Naval Operations Admiral Roughead, Deputy Secretary of Defense Gordon England, and Defense Assistant Secretary John Young about the future of the program, which Navy officials have repeatedly testified provides much-needed capabilities. Funding for a third destroyer was in the FY09 budget request sent to Congress by the Navy. The Senate version of the Defense Authorization legislation fully funds the $2.6 billion request, while the House version fails to provide funding to build any surface combatant at all, thus creating a terrible gap in work for BIW. If the Navy is considering changing its shipbuilding requirements, I would expect the CNO to work with me and other members of the Senate Armed Services Committee to ensure a stable, well-funded shipbuilding plan that meets the need for expanded capabilities and keeps our skilled shipbuilding workforce strong."

Developed under the DD(X) destroyer program, DDG-1000 Zumwalt is the lead ship in a class of next-generation, multi-mission surface combatants tailored for land attack and littoral dominance, with capabilities designed to defeat current and projected threats as well as improve battle force defense.

The Navy's new DD(X) program is the centerpiece a family of three surface combatant ships, including a destroyer, a cruiser and a smaller craft for littoral operations. At one time it seemed that the DD(X) contract could end up totaling $100 billion for some 70 warships in the DD(X) family: destroyers, cruisers, and a downsized seagoing killer called LCS, short for littoral combat ship. The cruiser and destroyer are expected to share a common hull design. The Littoral Combat Ship has an advanced hull designed for high speed and a shallow draft.

DD(X) is the centerpiece of a surface combatant family of ships that will deliver a broad range of capabilities. It is provides the baseline for spiral development of technology and engineering to support a range of future ship classes such as CG(X), LHA(R) and CVN-21. This advanced multi-mission destroyer will bring revolutionary improvements to precise time-critical strike and joint fires for our Expeditionary and Carrier Strike Groups of the future. It expands the battlespace by over 400%; has the radar cross section of a fishing boat; and is as quiet as a LOS ANGELES Class submarine. DD(X) will also enable the transformation of our operations ashore. Its on-demand, persistent, time-critical strike revolutionizes our joint fire support and ground maneuver concepts of operation so that our strike fighter aircraft are freed for more difficult targets at greater ranges. DD(X) will provide credible forward presence while operating independently or as an integral part of naval, joint, or combined expeditionary forces.

Northrop Grumman and General Dynamics were competitors for the DD(X)contract. The Navy asked the Pentagon's chief weapons buyer to approve the winner-take-all approach, which would force the losing bidder out of the shipbuilding market. In March 2005 twenty lawmakers said the contract to build the Navy's next-generation guided missile destroyer, the DD(X), should not be a winner-take-all contract.

In March 2005 Adm. Vernon Clark, the chief of naval operations, abandoned his goal of building the Navy to a 375-ship fleet. New procedures like keeping ships deployed overseas while rotating the crews mean the Navy will need no more than 325 ships and possibly as few as 260. The rate of building new destroyers would not support more than one shipyard at acceptable costs. The plan envisioned building about 1.4 destroyers annually, but never two a year. Building those ships in two yards would cost an extra $300 million per ship.

The DD-51 destroyers are built at both General Dynamics Bath Iron Works in Maine and at the Northrop Grumman Ingalls Shipyard in Mississippi. One of the two ship builders would lose the contract if the Navy adopts the sole-source plan in the future. The men and women of these shipyards have demonstrated time and again that they build the world's best surface combat ships. But more than local employees, they are a national asset which America must retain. A loss of that magnitude could drive BIW, one of Maine's largest private employers, out of business and would create a monopoly for destroyer production. With DD(X), local employees at Northrop Grumman Ingalls, the leading DD(X) contractor, can be ensured of a relatively steady employment. This is Mississippi's largest private employer. To put it into perspective, Ingalls is about three times the size of Nissan, the state's second largest in terms of job numbers. So the local implications of DD(X) to Mississippi are clear, especially along a Gulf Coast struggling to bounce back from Hurricane Katrina.

The Navy agreed to put on hold its plans to contract with a single shipyard for building all of the nation's stealth DD(X) Destroyers, calling the sole-source proposal "premature." However, the Navy has said it will continue to seek more information on the sole-source strategy, and had not made any final decisions on whether to adopt such a proposal in the future.

On 07 April 2006 the Navy announced that the first DD(X) destroyer will be designated DDG 1000. As the lead ship in the class, it will also be named in honor of former Chief of Naval Operations (CNO) Adm. Elmo R. "Bud" Zumwalt, Jr. Zumwalt was appointed Chief of Naval Operations in 1970. As the youngest man ever to serve as CNO, Zumwalt cemented an acclaimed reputation as a visionary leader and thoughtful reformer. July 4, 2000, then-President Bill Clinton celebrated Zumwalt's accomplishments and memory with the naming of the class and lead ship shortly after the admiral's passing in Durham, N.C., Jan. 2, 2000. Zumwalt was born in San Francisco in 1920 and grew up in Tulare, Calif. He was a cum laude graduate of the U.S. Naval Academy in 1942.

As CNO, Zumwalt initiated wide-ranging reforms in a dramatic effort to revitalize the Navy. Time magazine hailed Zumwalt as "the Navy's most popular leader since World War II." As the Navy's senior officer, he increased the warfighting capabilities of the dwindling U.S. fleet by outfitting remaining ships with more efficient and sophisticated weapons. He retired in 1974. In 1996, he took over as chairman of the board of the U.S. Navy Memorial Foundation. In addition to numerous decorations received from the U.S. Navy, including the Navy Distinguished Service Medal (three awards), the Legion of Merit (two awards) and Bronze Star with combat "V," he received decorations and awards from a number of foreign countries. In 1998, Zumwalt was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom for his service to the United States.

Zumwalt authored two books about his life in the Navy. On Watch (1976) recounts his Navy career and warns Americans about the Soviet naval threat. My Father, My Son (1986), co-authored with his late son, Elmo III, is an account of their Vietnam experiences and his son's tragic illness.

Under the Navy's dual lead ship acquisition strategy proposed in the President's budget for fiscal year 2007, Northrop Grumman Ship Systems and General Dynamics Bath Iron Works will concurrently build dual lead ships. Zumwalt will be delivered in 2012.

On 14 February 2008 the Navy exercised contract modifications for the construction of the dual lead ships of the Zumwalt class (DDG 1000) to General Dynamics Bath Iron Works and Northrop Grumman Shipbuilding. DDG 1000 and DDG 1001 are the lead ships of a class of next-generation multi-mission surface combatants tailored for land-attack and littoral dominance. BIW was awarded a $1.4 billion cost-plus contract for the construction of DDG 1000, and NGSB was awarded a $1.4 billion cost-plus contract for construction of DDG 1001.

Compared to current US Navy destroyers, the Zumwalt-class destroyer will triple both current naval surface fire coverage, as well as capability against anti-ship cruise missiles. It has a 50-fold radar cross section reduction compared to current destroyers, improves strike group defense 10-fold and has 10 times the operating area in shallow water regions against mines. The Zumwalt class fills an immediate and critical naval warfare gap, meeting validated Marine Corps fire support requirements.

A return to the old tumblehome configuration, combined with wave piercing technology makes the Northrop Grumman DD(X) design as close to a submarine as a surface ship can be / with the lion's share of the structure actually underwater. The DD(X) design is described as 'wave-piercing,' which means that the designers have deliberately foregone the sort of buoyancy which tends to lift conventional ships over waves. Their motive is clear; they want to minimize ship motion because any motion presents an observing radar with opportunities to pick up the ship. Similarly they will want to minimize rolling motion, and they will have to accept that waves will often break over the ship's deck.

The DD(X) concept is to have watch-standers trained functionally across warfare areas who can be flexibly employed as the situation demands. This approach results in a more compact, flexible watch team, which requires fewer augmentations and which is designed to flexibly respond to a variety of tactical situations. Underpinning this concept is a strategy in which crewmembers will be highly trained across multiple warfare areas or maintenance tasks and advanced skills will apply across multiple disciplines with specialized skills only being used periodically. Watchstations are manned in three sections, or 8-hour shifts, over the course of a day.

The DD(X) destroyer maintenance strategy focuses on allowing sailors to concentrate on war-fighting tasks and skills rather than on ship maintenance and preservation (i.e., "rust busting" skills). The DD(X) maintenance strategy envisions no organizational level repair conducted on the ship.

The DD(X) destroyer will employ extensive automated damage control systems, integrated with an optimally manned damage control organization to quickly suppress and extinguish fires and control their spread.

The Navy plans the DD(X) to be a multi-mission destroyer featuring a composite deckhouse and a Wave-Piercing Tumblehome Hull displacing about 14,000 tons. Optimized for the land-attack mission, it will have two Advanced Gun Systems (AGSs) with a combined magazine capacity of approximately 750 rounds of long-range land attack and conventional munitions. Each AGS will consist of a single-barrel 155mm gun supplied from an automated magazine. An Advanced Vertical Launch System (AVLS) with 80 cells will host Tomahawk Land Attack Missiles, Standard Missiles (SM2-MR) for local air defense, Evolved Seasparrow Missiles for engagement of both airborne and seaborne threats, and Vertical Launch Anti-Submarine Rockets for engagement of submarine threats. Two 40mm Close-In Gun Systems will enhance self-defense against air and surface threats.

DD(X)'s integrated power system will allow sharing of electrical power between propulsion motors and other electrical requirements such as combat system and auxiliary services. The Navy expects the new Dual Band Radar suite and the Integrated Undersea Warfare System to provide state-of-the-art battle space surveillance and advances in survivability and a total ship computing environment to allow a significant reduction in crew size. Introduction of additional new technology could reduce manning with each successive flight of the DD(X) spiral development.

The DD(X) program provided a baseline for spiral development of the DD(X) and the future cruiser or "CG(X)" with emphasis on common hullform and technology development. The Navy will use the advanced technology and networking capabilities from DD(X) and CG(X) in the development of the Littoral Combat Ship with the objective being a survivable, capable near-land platform to deal with threats of the 21st century. The intent was to innovatively combine the transformational technologies developed in the DD(X) program with the many ongoing R&D efforts involving mission focused surface ships to produce a state-of-the art surface combatant to defeat adversary attempts to deny access for US forces.