CG-21 Guided Missile Cruiser

The CG 21 cruiser was the proposed replacement for the TICONDEROGA (CG-47) class Aegis cruisers. The Twenty-First Century Surface Combatant (SC-21) Mission Need Statement (MNS) was approved by the Joint Requirements Oversight Council (JROC) in September 1994. Required capabilities called out in the MNS included: Power Projection; Battlespace Dominance; Command, Control and Surveillance; Joint Force Sustainment; Non-combat Operations; and Survivability / Mobility. In January 1995 the Defense Acquisition Board (DAB) gave approval to Milestone 0 for SC-21 Acquisition Phase 0 (Concept Exploration and Definition).

The initial investigations into the potential value of a new land battle oriented surface combatant came in 1994 and 1995. Previous to that time, the OPNAV Surface Warfare staff was concentrating on executing the CG-47 and DDG-51 acquisition strategy.

One study that developed a specific force acquisition strategy for OPNAV N86, sponsored by RADM Tom Marfiak (OPNAV N863) was the Twenty-First Century Surface Combatant Force Architecture Study. This study, conducted during FY95, investigated mission level requirements across the peacetime-wartime spectrum, assessing force acquisition options to sustain force structure in a limited budget environment. The recommended investment option included a six-ship Large Capacity Missile Ship class each featuring a 512 cell VLS, designed to be forward deployed to satisfy the continuing deterrence need for in-theater Tomahawks and to alleviate the shortfall of early capability in-theater at the start of a major conflict.

The land battle missions included strike and interdiction of invading armor. An armor defeating submunition warhead (Brilliant Anti-Tank submunition) was envisioned for Tomahawk, based on a contemporary Center for Naval Analyses study. The study also recommended that a second combatant class, the Sea Dominance Combatant, be constructed concurrently with the Large Capacity Missile Ship. It sustained force structure at the 130 level and remedied the shortfall in mission capability caused by the retirement of DD963s and FFGs.

In February 1995, Mr. John Douglas, Assistant Secretary of the Navy (Research, Development and Acquisition) initiated a Cost and Operational Effectiveness Analysis (COEA) effort to recommend a design for the 21st Century Surface Combatant (SC-21). The COEA was under the direction of RADM Phil Coady (OPNAV N86) and Mr. Ron Kiss, Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Navy (Ships). The tasker required the COEA team to identify mission deficiencies, estimate the requirement for the naval surface forces, and to evaluate the costs and benefits of reasonable alternative designs for the new surface combatant. RADM Dan Murphy (OPNAV N86) presided over the final year of the COEA and injected a strong influence in favor of a full land battle mission for the new combatant along with increased attention to acquisition and operating cost containment.

The two-year study reported out in June 1997. It recommended a new DD-21 Maritime Fire Support Ship concept whose missions included strike and long range precision fire support, and whose hull would be common with a follow-on CG 21. Features included 128 to 256 VLS cells, a new 155mm gun with a 1200 round magazine, a helo and UAV hanger, and a very capable ASW combat system. This ship extended land battle missions beyond strike and interdiction to include fire support for the Army as well as for the Marine Corps. This multi-mission combatant obviated the need to build a concurrent surface combatant.

The CG 21 [not to be confused with CG-21 USS Gridley] is the follow on ship to DD 21, and second member of the SC 21 "family of ships". By extending the useful service life of the combat system onboard the existing CG-42 Ticonderoga cruisers, the Navy was able to delay the introduction of CG 21, which allowed building additional lower-cost DD 21 units. In the case of the cruisers, it extended the CG-42 Ticonderoga combat system service life by five years, thereby buying valuable time to fully develop the successor CG 21.

Depending on their specific requirements, future Navy warship classes can be expected to have technologies similar to those on DD 21 including enhanced stealth characteristics, multi-function apertures, reduced crewing, and electric drive propulsion systems. Platforms such as the the CG 21 cruiser, the Joint Command and Control Ship (JCC(X)), the Auxiliary Dry Cargo ship (T-ADC(X)), CVN 77 and follow-on CVN(X) aircraft carriers, the LHD(X) amphibious ship, even future submarine classes, all benefit from research and development efforts ongoing within the DD 21 program.

Integrated Power System (IPS) is the all-electric architecture for future ships, providing electric power to the total ship (propulsion and ship service) with an integrated plant. IPS offers reduced costs of ownership, reduced construction costs, improved survivability, and greater architectural flexibility. The Integrated Power System (IPS) will provide total ship electric power, including electric drive, for all future surface ships including surface combatants, amphibious, auxiliary, and command ships. Near term ship targets include but are not limited to DD21, CG 21, JCC(X), and LH(X), with potential application to future flights of LPD 17. The electric power system must meet individual ship requirements, support all ship systems, and be able to support operations for as long as the ship remains afloat. These ships must operate wherever required, particularly in littoral waters, to enable joint maritime expeditionary force operations and project precise strike power ashore.

The Advanced Shipboard IRST is the next generation IRST system that will support future US Navy surface ships such as DD 21 and CG 21. The Advanced Shipboard IRST is primarily a self-defense system that will be used for autonomous detection, declaration, and track of sea-skimming Anti-Ship Cruise Missiles (ASCM) and other air vehicles. The system will also provide detection, declaration and track of surface objects. The system will provide passive 360 degree, day/night video to the ship for situational awareness, navigation and covert operation support.

Since 1992 the Affordability Through Commonality (ATC) Program has been working with industry and other government entities to identify and demonstrate innovative ways in which the Navy can reduce Fleet cost of ownership through the use of COTS and associated risk mitigation and demonstration efforts. Starting with the standardization of equipment and use of modular approaches, the program has aggressively refocused in light of acquisition reform. With a continued partnership with industry, ATC is emphasizing Open Systems Architectural Concepts, process improvements in design, construction, and maintenance, risk mitigation and reduction demonstrations of selected technologies. In May 1998, the ATC program transferred from the NAVSEA Ship Engineering Directorate (SEA 03) to PEO DD 21 as an associated program. The goal of ATC is to jointly develop with Industry, technology solutions that may benefit future Navy ships such as DD 21, CG 21, LPD 17, CVN 77, CVN (X) with possible backfit to ships like DDG 51.

In 2003 the Navy successfully contracted with industry to develop and build a replacement for the aging Cobra Judy surveillance platform. Working in partnership with industry and leveraging Missile Defense Agency investments in radar technology, the Navy developed an innovative strategy which accelerated the acquisition of this essential capability while also creating the possibility to leverage the Cobra Judy program to create a competition for the radar for the Navy's future cruiser, CG(X).