Summary of the Presentation on the USS Zumwalt
with
Captain Scott Tait
Commanding Officer, the USS Zumwalt
NSF participants were treated to an excellent presentation on the U.S. navy’s newest class of guided missile destroyers, the USS Zumwalt, by the ship’s commanding officer, Captain Scott Tait. The Zumwalt is currently in a maintenance period, completing integration of its weapon systems and will begin an extensive, comprehensive “first in class” test program next year. The Zumwalt is intended to serve as a “multi-mission stealth ship” to conduct missions that include sea control, power projection, command and control, and support of forces ashore. The Zumwalt is designed for offensive operations against submarines, surface ships, aircraft and land-based forces. These ships were originally designed to replace the Iowa-class battleships.
The Zumwalt will operate in an intensive cyber environment in the future. The ship has a low radar cross-section and is much more difficult to detect on radar. It has a “wave-piercing tumblehome hull form” whose sides slope inward above the waterline, which will reduce the radar cross-section. The destroyer’s “angular build” makes it much more difficult to detect than the average ship of that class. Despite being 40% larger than an Arleigh-class destroyer, the radar cross-section is more like that of a small fishing boat!
The Zumwalt carries a formidable array of weaponry that includes vertically launched missiles, gun systems, and a variety of embarked air, surface and undersea systems.
Captain Tait’s PowerPoint is not released for public distribution. But here is a link to the Navy’s own video on the Zumwalt that we are sure you will enjoy:
Thanks again to Captain Scott Tait for this great presentation, and we look forward to welcoming him back to the NSF again after the Zumwalt is deployed with the fleet.