US Navy Destroyer To Undergo Sea Trials Next Month

The US Navy's DDG-1000 Zumwalt destroyer will be undergoing initial sea trials next month, following the seven years of construction.

The Zumwalt destroyer has a tumblehome hull optimized for stealth. It also features new propulsion and power distribution system, and a software environment that ties together nearly all the systems to each other on the ship.

"We've got a builder's sea trial with a notional start of the 7th of December," Sean Stackley, the Navy"s top official for research, acquisition and development, said.

The sensors will be installed on the detroyer when it reaches its home port of San Diego, Defense News reported Wednesday. However, presently the Zumwalt’s mission systems include the ship's combat systems, radars.

"This two-phased delivery approach has been in place since the contract was first struck," Stackley said. The roughly 15,700-ton Zumwalt has been under construction since 2008 in Maine at the Bath Iron Works shipyard of General Dynamics.

The Navy has plans to build only three DDG-1000s, whereas actually it had considered building 32 ships, then reduced that number to 12 before settling on three. 

The ship carried out extensive tests at the shipyard in mid-October – a 96-hour, four-day “fast cruise.” “We did everything from rolling the shafts, bringing up and down systems, testing failure modes, testing watch station effectiveness,” Stackley said.

“You’re limited in terms of radiation – radiating things while next to the pier. But we did everything that we could next to the pier prior to getting underway.” He said.