USS Zumwalt Sea Trials

[BridgeTroll]

https://www.youtube.com/v/XeFESDIxekA

http://www.popsci.com/this-is-zumwalt-at-sea

The Navy's crazy new ship is getting its sea legs

By Kelsey D. Atherton  Posted Yesterday at 2:59pm

The USS Zumwalt is boldly bringing the United States Navy into the future. Built to carry railguns and laser weapons that don't quite exist yet, the sleek destroyer has a weird stealthy body more in line with something Darth Vader would command than the last century of warships. This week, the Navy took it out to sea for the first time, and today they released a video.

On the calm, clear surface of the Atlantic Ocean on December 7th, the Zumwalt looked like a giant knife slicing through the water. Or maybe like a submarine that forgot it was supposed to travel under water. The angular profile is built for stealth, and it means that the small crew will spend most of their time inside the modern and high-tech confines of the smooth gray sea-pyramid. In the back of the vessel, there's a landing pad that can accommodate two helicopters or multiple small drones.

The third Zumwalt-class destroyer might come with a railgun on board, but for now the current vessel sports two 155mm guns for use against large ships, housed in smooth couplings to minimize radar signature. There are also a couple of 30mm guns, which are smaller (and slower firing) than the guns originally planned for the ship, so it can defend itself against smaller attack craft. These are all secondary to the ship's main weapon, which includes 20 missile system bays that can hold at least four missiles each.

For now, the Navy is just showcasing the basic workings of the voyaging ship. Smooth seas, so far.

[BridgeTroll]

[spuwho]

The Zumwalt is to the Navy what a F-22 Raptor is to the Air Force. A production buildout of a proof of concept.

The Navy typically doesnt do "radical" changes due to the expense and time to build issues involved, but the LCS and now Zumwalt are new Naval approaches to sea worthy combat.

The biggest issues facing the Zumwalt are dissimilar metal corrosion, inability to defend itself against small watercraft, and lack of non missile firepower. The guns on the original design were so small as to be found ineffective and enlarged.

The bleeding edge in this ship is the technology, automation and sensor packaging it carries. The digital ship management system is very powerful and reduces manpower requirements.

This is what the Navy wants to see out of the Zumwalt program, how well can they utilize technology and automation to increase combat effectiveness.

[BridgeTroll]

This will likely also be a test bed for a naval rail gun.  The power plant aboard this ship is designed to handle the immense power requirements of that system...

[spuwho]

This will likely also be a test bed for a naval rail gun.  The power plant aboard this ship is designed to handle the immense power requirements of that system...

Agreed. I have been reading about how the USS Gerald Ford and the Zumwalts are using an all new design for power. The reactor in the Ford and the capacitor bank for the EMALS are all new.

The Zumwalt also has a large capacitor room to store energy needed to initiate a directed mass (rail),  particle or energy weapon.

[Jason]

Looks like one of the old Ironclad ships...

[spuwho]

Going to sea trials and instead get pulled in rescue ops. What a way to start.

Navy's new Zumwalt destroyer rescues ailing fishing boat captain off Portland

http://www.pressherald.com/2015/12/12/navys-new-stealth-destroyer-zumwalt-rescues-ailing-fishing-boat-captain-off-portland/

The Navy's new stealth destroyer endured a real life-and-death test Saturday when crew members aboard the future USS Zumwalt helped rescue a Maine fisherman suffering a medical emergency at sea.

The Zumwalt, a 600-foot-long guided missile destroyer built at Bath Iron Works, was conducting sea trials early Saturday morning when the U.S. Coast Guard requested assistance from any boats in the vicinity of the fishing vessel Danny Boy, located about 40 nautical miles southeast of Portland at 3 a.m. The captain of the Portland-based Danny Boy, 46-year-old Dale Sparrow, was experiencing chest pains, but a Coast Guard helicopter crew determined it was too dangerous to try to hoist the captain because of the 45-foot boat's deck configuration.

The Zumwalt responded to the scene and launched an 11-meter "rigid hull inflatable boat" – the type used by Navy SEALs and other special forces – to bring Sparrow on board the destroyer.

"After medical evaluation, the patient was transferred from Zumwalt to a Coast Guard helicopter and then to an area hospital," a Navy spokeswoman, Capt. Thurraya Kent, said in a statement Saturday night. The Coast Guard said Sparrow was flown to Portland International Jetport and then taken to Maine Medical Center.

Video released Saturday by the Coast Guard showed Sparrow being lifted in a litter from the Zumwalt's deck to the Coast Guard MH-60 Jayhawk helicopter. A crew member of the Jayhawk could also be seen being hoisted back into the helicopter.

"Our main concern with this type of medical emergency is to recover the patient safely and transport them to a higher level care as quickly as possible," said Lt. David Bourbeau, public affairs officer with the Coast Guard Sector Northern New England. "Fortunately, the Zumwalt was operating in the area and was able to provide valuable assistance."

The largest and most technologically advanced destroyer ever built for the Navy, the $4.3 billion Zumwalt is currently undergoing its first round of sea trials in order to test the ship's hull, mechanical and electrical systems. The unusual-looking ship left Bath on Monday to the cheers and applause of hundreds of people lining the Kennebec River, and news reports as well as video of the ship's maiden sea trials received attention around the globe.

Officials at BIW, which is owned by General Dynamics, issued a statement praising the ship's crew.

"General Dynamics Bath Iron Works is incredibly proud of the work its men and women did alongside the U.S. Navy and U.S. Coast Guard to rescue a fisherman in distress," said BIW spokesman Matt Wickenheiser. "Their actions reflected the highest values of our company. Following the rescue, BIW, the Navy and other Naval contractors returned to the task at hand, running sea trials for DDG 1000, the future USS Zumwalt."

Sparrow was listed in stable condition Saturday night at Maine Med. A woman who answered the phone at Danny Boy Fisheries Inc. in North Yarmouth declined to comment Saturday evening.

A Portland-based fishing vessel named Danny Boy had to be towed back to Portland by the Coast Guard in September after becoming disabled by engine problems about 50 miles east of Portsmouth, New Hampshire. There were no injuries in that incident.

[spuwho]

It's really true, the leader of the USS Zumwalt, his name is Captain James Kirk.

Per Star Trek.com

http://www.startrek.com/article/captain-kirk-leads-uss-zumwalt-to-sea

Captain Kirk Leads USS Zumwalt to Sea

Captain Kirk is back in action... but not THAT Captain Kirk. The real-life USS Zumwalt, the largest destroyer ever built for the United States Navy, departed Bath Iron Works in Bath, Maine, for the first time on Monday. And it did so boldly under the command of Navy Captain James Kirk.



"We are absolutely fired up to see Zumwalt get underway," Captain Kirk told the Associated Press. "For the crew and all those involved in designing, building, and readying this fantastic ship, this is a huge milestone."



According to the same story, Bath Iron Works will test the ship's performance and makes any necessary tweaks this winter. The goal is to deliver it to the Navy sometime in 2016.

Star Trek fans will recall that last year, when the USS Zumwalt was christened, Bath Iron Works received a congratulatory letter and a signed photo from the other Captain Kirk, William Shatner. The letter read, "Unfortunately I can't be with you when your vessel is commissioned and obviously your captain, Captain Kirk, is dear to my heart. So forgive me for not attending, my schedule won't allow me, but know that you are in our thoughts — Mr. & Mrs. Shatner — and that we bless you and hope that you have a safe journey wherever your ship takes you. Our best, William and Elizabeth Shatner."



.

[finehoe]

In related news:

The Navy's newest ship breaks down, limps into port

The littoral combat ship Milwaukee, the Navy's newest ship, broke down Dec. 11 and had to be towed more than 40 nautical miles to Joint Expeditionary Base Little Creek, Virginia.

The ship suffered an engineering casualty while transiting from Halifax, Canada, to Mayport, Florida, and ultimately its home port of San Diego. The cause is being evaluated by ship's crew and technical consultants.

Initial indications are that fine metal debris collected in the lube oil filter caused the system to shut down, according to a Navy statement provided to Navy Times. The cause of the metal debris in the lube oil system is not known and assessments are ongoing.

The ship was commissioned Nov. 21 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and has been making the long trek to San Diego through the Great Lakes since.

Problems with the propulsion plant began almost as soon as Milwaukee got underway from Halifax. The ship's computer system triggered an alarm and the ship called away an engineering casualty.

Engineers cleaned out the metal filings from the lube oil filter and locked the port shaft as a precaution. In the early hours of Friday morning, the ship was conducting steering tests and lost lube oil pressure in the starboard combining gear due to the presence of the same metal filings in that filter.

The metal filings in the lube oil have not been a class-wide issue, according to the Navy.

The ship then dropped anchor while the engineers worked on the system. By mid-morning, the salvage ship Grapple rendezvoused with Milwaukee and connected a towing hawser line for the trip back to Little Creek.

The ship is currently manned by Crew 104, and was scheduled to swap with Crew 108 in Mayport. The crews will now swap in Virginia while the ship's system is repaired.

News of the breakdown reached Capitol Hill by late Friday. Sen. John McCain, chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, said in a statement to Navy Times that the plant issues were troubling and called for accountability.

"Reporting of a complete loss of propulsion on USS Milwaukee (LCS 5) is deeply alarming, particularly given this ship was commissioned just 20 days ago," McCain said. "U.S. Navy ships are built with redundant systems to enable continued operation in the event of an engineering casualty, which makes this incident very concerning.

"I expect the Navy to conduct a thorough investigation into the root causes of this failure, hold individuals accountable as appropriate, and keep the Senate Armed Services Committee informed."

http://scoopdeck.navytimes.com/2015/12/12/the-navys-newest-ship-breaks-down-limps-into-port/

[BridgeTroll]

Different class of ship but just as experimental and controversial...

[spuwho]

Different class of ship but just as experimental and controversial...

The last LCS at Mayport did not get a very good response from some of the land based support crews that performed maintenance.

Lots of dissimilar metal corrosion, flex cracking and other signs of advanced age for a relatively young ship.

Agreed, its total R&D for the LCS right now, so better to have the issues now than in combat.