The U.S Navy, as per the budget proposal for 2022, plans to install a dozen so-called Conventional
Prompt Strike or CPS missiles on each of the Zumwalt class warships.
The U.S Navy is requesting Congress for $1.4 billion in 2022 in order to continue developing
the CPS missile and begin installing it to the Zumwalts.
Viewers may note that the service previously announced it would fit the 35-inch-diameter,
two-stage missile in multi-purpose launch tubes that it’s installing on the new “Block
V” version of the Virginia-class submarine.
The aim is to provide the Zumwalt class warships a serious land-attack capability.
In this video Defense Updates analyzes how the U.S Navy plans to bring out beast mode
in Zumwalt class warships with the installation of Conventional Prompt Strike hypersonic missile?
Let’s get started.
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Zumwalt-class destroyer is designed as multi-mission stealth ships with a focus on land attack.
It brings stealth to a major warship.
Zumwalt-class destroyers feature unique wave-piercing tumblehome hulls.
The hull slopes inward from above the waterline which is very different from traditional hulls
which move outwards at a hard angle.
The design significantly reduces the radar cross-section since the slope makes the hull
return very less radar signal that is directed to it when compared to a traditional hull.
Some reports indicate that the ship has a radar return similar to a small fishing boat.
There is no other frontline battleship that has this kind of revolutionary design.
The Zumwalt-class destroyers have two 155-millimeter guns as well as 80 MK57 cells protected by
the Peripheral Vertical Launch System (PVLS).
The PVLS is designed to reduce the chances of the risk of loss of the entire missile
battery or even the entire ship in case of the magazine explosion and are placed in the
outer shell of the ship’s superstructure.
Each Mk. 57 can carry a single SM-2 or SM-6 long-range surface-to-air missile, ASROC anti-submarine
rocket torpedo, or up to four Evolved Sea Sparrow short-range surface-to-air missiles.
Importantly, they can also carry Tomahawks.
Conventional Prompt Strike (CPS) is a United States military effort to develop a system
that can deliver a precision conventional strike in a similar manner to a nuclear ICBM.
Such a weapon would allow the United States to respond far more swiftly to rapidly emerging
threats than is possible with conventional forces.
CPS will have hypersonic speed.
An object is said to be hypersonic once they exceed the speeds of Mach 5 that is 5 times
the speed of sound.
This is about 1,715 meters per second or 3,836mph or 6,174 km/h.
CPS is intended to complement existing American rapid-response forces, such as Forward Deployed
Forces, Air Expeditionary Groups (which can deploy within 48 hours) and carrier battle
groups (which can respond within 96 hours)
It will be an alternative to nuclear weapons for strategic retaliatory strikes for around
30% of targets.
CPS was originally designed to deploy aboard U.S. Navy submarines but they are now inline
to be deployed to the Zumwalt warships as well as several other platforms.
Conventional Prompt Strike missile has a larger footprint when compared to many other ship-based
missiles.
To accommodate the first-stage booster and the second-stage container for the hypersonic
glide vehicle, it will have a length of 40 feet.
The booster is responsible for propelling the glider to hypersonic speed.
CPS won't fit in the Mk. 57 cell of the Zumwalt class.
While the Zumwalts are pretty large vessels displacing 16,000 tons of water which is nearly
twice that of Arleigh Burke class destroyers, it doesn't have much space.
This is mainly because of the downward-sloping hulls which limit the scope.
To mitigate this, the U.S Navy plans to remove the two 155-millimeter Advanced Gun Systems
presently sitting in the bow of each Zumwalt.
Zumalt was supposed to get close to the enemy using its stealth design and use the gun system
to hurl projectiles from a range of 80 miles or around 130 km.
But this didn't work out.
The Long Range Land Attack Projectile or LRLAP, the precision-guided shell that would arm
the ship’s guns, saw cost escalation from $50,000 a round to $800,000 which is equivalent
to cruise missiles that have much longer range and hence not practical.
So, LRLAP was canceled and the guns are currently useless.
The space made available with the removal of the Advanced Gun System should enable the
Zumwalt to accommodate a dozen CPS missiles.
Zumwalt class has been an expensive, very long, and almost torturous undertaking.
But the class is one of a kind and has a lot of potentials.
Zumwalt’s stealth characteristics will enable it to snick in undetected near the target
and a CPS hypersonic missile launched from the relatively close range will be nearly
impossible to stop.
The three Zumwalt warships could be assigned to target high-value enemy assets which might
be a suicide mission for conventional surface vessels.
The Zumwalt has been plagued with development and construction issues but the addition of
CPS could be a genuine redemption.
Missile defense is incredibly complex & expensive to develop and even more pricey to operationally
deploy.
It requires detection as well as interception systems to work perfectly in tandem.
So, it's being persuaded by only a few nations.
Hypersonic missile interception will be even harder to pull off as the missile defense
system will have very little time to analyze and intervene.
It can be said that the Zumwalt class armed with CPS missiles will be as potent as it
gets.