Navy’s USS Zumwalt Destroyer Completes First Live Fire Test

US Navy sailors aboard USS Zumwalt (DDG 1000) guided-missile destroyer have successfully concluded a structural test fire of the Mark 46 MOD 2 Gun Weapon System (GWS).

The work was executed by the sailors with engineers and technicians from Navy Surface Warfare Centers on the Naval Air Weapons Center Weapons Division (NAWCWD) Sea Test Range in Point Mugu on May 16, the US Navy said in a release Wednesday.

On April 24, the Navy accepted delivery of the stealthy $4 billion ship, three years after it was commissioned.

“The privilege of being a ‘first-in-class’ ship includes having the opportunity to systematically conduct testing across the breadth of systems installed onboard the ship,” said Capt. Andrew Carlson, Zumwalt’s commanding officer. “The real plus is conducting those tests, such as today’s live fire with the Mark 46 GWS, which provide tangible evidence of combat capability maturation.”

The Mark 46 GWS is a remotely operated naval gun system that uses 30mm high velocity cannon, a forward looking infrared sensor, a low light television camera, and a laser rangefinder for shipboard self-defense against small, high speed surface targets. It is a program of record already successfully installed and operated on LPD-17 and LCS class ships. The test firing on board Zumwalt was the first large caliber weapons firing event for the Zumwalt Class Destroyer Program and occurred only three weeks after the Navy officially accepted delivery of the Combat System.

Structural test fires assess structural and electrical components of the ship against shock and vibration of the weapon firing, as well as measuring any potential hazards to personnel or degradations to adjacent equipment as a result of firing live ordnance. The tests are a coordinated effort between the Zumwalt Class Destroyer Program Office, the U.S. 3rd Fleet, Commander, Naval Surface Forces, U.S. Pacific Fleet, and the Naval Sea Systems Command (NAVSEA) Surface Warfare Centers located in Dahlgren, Virginia, Port Hueneme, California, and Indian Head, Maryland.