The Influence of History

The Spruance -class destroyers have probably the most complex missile loadout history of any non-air defense ship. Unfortunately, the numerous changes and variation have surprisingly little available documentation and I have been forced to rely heavily on photographs to fill in the gaps. Therefore, many of the dates in this post are only estimates. The Spruance -class was designed during the late 1960’s as a modern warship to replace the large number of WWII-era Fletcher , Allen M Sumner , and Gearing -class class destroyers that were swiftly becoming obsolete. Force structure analysis during the design process revealed that while air defense systems significantly increased unit cost, it was ASW that drove force size requirements. Therefore, it was decided to supplement DDG and DLG production with a more affordable DD design that eventually became the Spruance -class. In a drive for greater efficiency, the DD would also share its hull with a DDG design. While the related DDG was neve...

During the 1970's, several new technologies such as the helicopter, the gas turbine, and the lightweight surface to air missile became available, driving the creation of a new generation of warship. The United States led the way with the Spruance -class destroyers, and the British followed with the Type 22 frigates. In Japan, these developments took somewhat longer, but eventually led to the creation of the new type of general purpose destroyer. Hatsuyuki-class The first of these new ships was the twelve members of the Hatsuyuki -class, which entered service beginning in 1982. Unlike the preceding Japanese destroyers that relied on guns, Hatsuyuki was built with a substantial missile battery for countering air, surface, and subsurface threats. This consisting of an octuplet ASROC box launcher forward, two quadruple Harpoon canister launchers amidships, and an octuplet Sea Sparrow box launcher aft (on the first ships five ships this was the American Mk 29, while the later ships we...

Zumwalt (DDG-1000), the lead ship of her class, before the removal of her 155mm guns The exact missile armament of the Zumwalt -class has always been a rather opaque topic and the United States Navy itself has issued a variety of contradictory statements over the years as the ships' capabilities were adjusted during construction. The mission of the Zumwalt- class has also changed substantially over the years as the ships were reworked from littoral land-attack specialists into blue water ship-killers and deep strike platforms to match the Navy's shifting strategic realities. New Weapons For A New Ship Despite the Zumwalt -class’s impressive 16,000-ton displacement, they were originally armed with just 80 vertical launch cells compared with the 90-96 of the  Arleigh Burke- class or the 122 of the  Ticonderoga -class . However, the  Zumwalt- class is equipped with the significantly larger Mk 57 VLS instead of the legacy Mk 41 VLS of the other classes, with 25-inch by 23-...

The Arleigh Burke -class guided missile destroyer was the first of a new generation of warships. Although designed and designated as destroyers, the size and capability of these ships meant that they ended up effectively filling the role previously occupied by the missile cruisers. As the years have passed, the modular nature of their combat systems has allowed them to easily accommodate new weapons and missions, until today they stand alone as the most capable multi-mission surface combatants afloat. Arleigh Burke Flight I Arleigh Burke (DDG-51) commissioned in 1991 with just three missiles: SM-2, the conventional land attack Tomahawk , and Harpoon. Although it is almost certain that she was she was designed for the nuclear and antiship versions of Tomahawk, those were withdrawn from service with the end of the Cold War and were likely never carried by any ship of the class. Further, delays with the Vertically Launched ASROC (VLA) program meant that weapon was also was not avail...

After the initial introduction of guided missile systems on converted gun cruisers, it became clear that a new type of warship was needed as the existing designs were either too small or unnecessarily large. These new ships were assigned the hull designation DLG and dubbed “frigates” after the famous sailing ships such as USS Constitution. That the USN applied this name to powerful guided missile ships while the European navies used it to refer to cheap submarine hunters reflects a historic difference - in the nineteenth century, the frigates were the most powerful vessels in the small American navy, while in Europe the frigates were seen as minor combatants that lived in the shadow of the ships of the line. However, the American use of this term did not survive long, and, in 1975, the USN dropped the DLG designation as part of a wider simplification of its hull numbers. The frigates were redesignated as either cruisers (CG) or destroyers (DDG). Simultaneously, the ocean escorts (DE)...

Gyatt (DDG-1) The United States Navy’s first guided missile destroyer was the converted  Gearing -class destroyer  Gyatt (originally given the designation DDG-712 during her conversion, she was renumbered DDG-1 five months after recommissioning). Gyatt rejoined the fleet in 1956 with a Mk8 twin arm Terrier launcher and a fourteen round magazine replacing her torpedoes and aft 5" mount. However, she was always something of a test platform to determine the practicality of putting missiles on destroyers and in 1962, just six years after recommissioning, the Terrier launcher was removed and Gyatt reverted to her original destroyer designation Gyatt (DDG-712) in 1956: 14x Terrier Charles F. Adams-class While Gyatt conversion had tried to put too big a missile on too small a ship, the Navy still desired guided missile destroyers and the development of the smaller Tartar missile made it possible. The first purpose built guided missile destroyers were the Charles F. Adams -...

While aviation-heavy escort vessels were employed by several navies in the 20th century, the JMSDF stuck with them the longest. Intended to operate as the centerpiece of units that included guided missile ships and general purpose escorts, the Japanese helicopter destroyers were primarily valued for their airgroup. However, they carried a substantial armament of their own and remained fully capable of engaging enemy forces directly. The Haruna-class The two ship  Haruna -class were the first such vessels. Commissioned in 1973 and 1974, their original missile armament was an eight cell ASROC box launcher with eight reloads stored in the superstructure. While this may not seem like much, Haruna  was the first Japanese ship to carry ASROC reloads, which meant that her missile armament was actually second heaviest in the JMSDF (after its lone Tartar ship, Amatsukaze ). Haruna in 1973: 16x ASROC Beginning with Hiei in 1984 and followed by Haruna herself in 1988, these t...

Since the end of World War II, Japan has been one of America's closest allies and the recipient of some of the most advanced weapons the United States could offer. Naval forces have been no exception, and the Japanese Maritime Self Defense Force has a rich history of guided missile ships. As the title says, this post will only cover the air warfare ships of the JMSDF, while the armaments of its other warships will be detailed at a later date. Amatsukaze Japan's first guided missile ship was the destroyer Amatsukaze in 1965. She was armed with a single rail Mk 13 launcher for Tartar, and carried a total of 40 missiles. This was the same armament as the American Farragut -class that had commissioned 1959, and Amatsukaze  was the first foreign vessel built with Tartar. While she was considered highly successful, her high cost meant that she was the only ship of her class. Amatsukaze in 1965: 40x Tartar As Japan's sole guided missile ship for over a decade, Amatsukaze ...