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The Navy just spent $22.5B on 3 destroyers that have non-functional main guns.
by ahi 5y ago
The Navy just spent $22.5B on 3 destroyers that have non-functional main guns.
- fithisux 5y agoThis is just not true.
- rektide 5y agoYeah, there's guns & they work. But at $800k+ a round, the Navy decided they couldn't afford the ammunition. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zumwalt-class_destroyer#Advanced_Gun_System https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zumwalt-class_destroyer#Advanc... As of April 2021, the Navy announced they were going to try to replace the guns with 12x hypersonic missiles. Lots of details: http://www.navweaps.com/Weapons/WNUS_61-62_ags.php http://www.navweaps.com/Weapons/WNUS_61-62_ags.php It's hard to imagine, but the future 2x 0.6MW lasers (not in the initial plans for this new DDG(X)) actually sound like a possible cost saver. Different use though: "slow" moving 83 mi 155mm projectile has much different uses than a fast moving but much more limited range/power laser.
- ranger207 5y agoWell, it is true. The Advanced Gun System on the three Zumwalt class destroyers don't have any ammo and are useless. The problem is that Congress mandated that the Zumwalts have guns so they could perform naval gunfire (a concept that's been obsoleted since precision guided missiles or aircraft could be launched from several times the range of any gun), then Congress cut the Zumwalt class from 32 ships to 3 (which was probably a good thing, but they really should've planned on about 3 testbed ships in the first place), which drove up the cost of ammo for the few remaining guns, which Congress then balked at and cancelled as well.
- trasz 5y agoHey, it's just a bit over two James Webb telescopes.