The super-futuristic “USS Zumwalt” set sail on its maiden voyage from Fort Popham on December 7, 2015 under the command of Captain James Kirk (!). The high-tech warship was laid down at the Bath Iron Works shipyard in 2011 and, at 15,700 tons and 183 meters long, is the largest and, with a unit price of around four billion US dollars, also the most expensive destroyer in the world.
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The design breaks with all conventions: The hull has its greatest lateral extension not on deck, but at waterline level. This reduces the buoyancy and the weapon platforms lie more calmly in the water. Guided by an X-band radar, the armament of the “stealth” destroyer consists of 80 vertical cells for sea target and cruise missiles, two fully automatic 155-millimeter guns from BAE Systems as well as up to two MH-60R on-board helicopters and up to three RQ-8 helicopter drones.
A later installation of SM-2 missiles for ballistic missile defense is being discussed.
