U.S. Navy to Equip USS Zumwalt with First-Ever Shipborne Hypersonic Missile System

The U.S. Navy is retrofitting its USS Zumwalt destroyer with its first-ever shipborne hypersonic missile system.

The missile tubes, replacing previously unused and costly gun turrets, are currently being installed at a Mississippi shipyard. Once completed, the warship will be capable of conducting precision strikes from greater distances.

This development is part of the ongoing competition between the U.S., Russia, and China to advance hypersonic weapon technologies. Hypersonic missiles, which travel at speeds beyond Mach 5, are more agile and harder to intercept than traditional weapons.

All three Zumwalt-class destroyers will be equipped with four missile tubes, each carrying three hypersonic missiles, providing a total of 12 weapons per ship. As per experts, the previous decision to leave gun turrets inactivated was a costly blunder, but the conversion to hypersonic platforms presents an opportunity for the Navy.