The U.S. Navy has received its first Flight III destroyer, the USS Jack H. Lucas (DDG
125), from Huntington Ingalls Industries’ Ingalls Shipbuilding division.
The Flight III Destroyers were officially transferred to the Navy on June 27 after conducting
a series of trials to demonstrate their readiness.
Ingalls is currently constructing the Flight III Arleigh Burke-class destroyer, specifically
designed to meet the advanced requirements of the U.S. Navy.
This upgraded version incorporates several design modifications that significantly enhance
its capabilities.
The vessel boasts a comprehensive array of offensive and defensive weapons systems, including
the AN/SPY-6(V)1 Air and Missile Defense Radar and the Aegis Baseline 10 Combat System.
Kari Wilkinson, president of Ingalls Shipbuilding, “Delivering the first Flight III ship reflects
the relentless efforts of our shipbuilders and those of our Navy and supplier partners.
We are committed to maintaining a consistent and resilient destroyer production team in
order to be ready to support the Navy and our country.”
In this video Defense Updates how AN/SPY-6(V)1 radar fitted USS Jack H. Lucas will be the
most potent destroyer of the U.S. Navy ? Let's get into the details.
The US Navy said in a statement :
“Accepting delivery of DDG 125 represents the official transfer of the ship from the
shipbuilder to the Navy.
Prior to delivery, the ship conducted a series of at-sea and pier-side trials to demonstrate
its material and operational readiness.
DDG 125 is named for Pfc.
Jack Lucas, who served in the U.S. Marines during World War II, earning the Medal of
Honor for his heroism at Iwo Jima, when he was just 17 years old.
He is the youngest Marine, and the youngest serviceman in World War II, to be awarded
the United States' highest military decoration for valor.
In 1961, he returned to military service; as a Captain in the U.S. Army, Lucas trained
younger troops headed for Vietnam.
“Delivery of the future USS Jack H. Lucas is an historic occasion.
As the Navy’s first Flight III destroyer, DDG 125 brings the most advanced Integrated
Air and Missile Defense capability to the fleet,” said Capt.
Seth Miller, DDG 51 class program manager, Program Executive Office (PEO) Ships.
“I am tremendously proud of the entire Navy and industry team for delivering this ship.
The AEGIS Shipbuilding program has demonstrated yet again that it remains a world class organization
and carries on the legacy of Rear Admiral Wayne E. Meyer that was established over fifty
years ago.
Build a little, test a little and learn a lot.
Job well done!”
The Flight III upgrade is centered on the AN/SPY-6(V)1 Air and Missile Defense Radar
and incorporates upgrades to the electrical power and cooling capacity.
Ingalls’ Shipbuilding division is currently in production on future destroyers Ted Stevens
(DDG 128), Jeremiah Denton (DDG 129), George M. Neal (DDG 131) and Sam Nunn (DDG 133).”
The AN/SPY-6 is an active electronically scanned array 3D radar developed for the United States
Navy (USN).
It is designed to provide integrated air and missile defense for Flight III Arleigh Burke-class
destroyers.
Variants are also developed for retrofitting Flight IIA Arleigh Burkes and for installation
aboard Constellation-class frigates, Gerald R. Ford-class aircraft carriers, and San Antonio-class
amphibious transport docks.
The SPY-6 radars integrated into integrated to Aegis Combat System can help defend against
ballistic missiles, cruise missiles, hostile aircraft and surface ships simultaneously
and provide several advantages over legacy radars, including greater detection range,
increased sensitivity and more accurate discrimination.
It will enable Arleigh Burke warships to shoot down incoming threats by using missiles like
SM-6 more reliably.
SPY-6 has scalable and modular radar arrays that reduce cost and sustainment needs while
meeting the mission requirements of seven classes of ships.
The US Navy has secured contracts from Raytheon for the SPY-6 Radar half a decade, receiving
contracts as far back as 2018.
The SPY-6 system consists of two primary radars and a radar suite controller (RSC) to coordinate
the sensors.
An S-band radar is to provide volume search, tracking, ballistic missile defense discrimination,
and missile communications, while the X-band radar is to provide horizon search, precision
tracking, missile communication, and terminal illumination of targets.
The S-band and X-band sensors will also share functionality, including radar navigation,
periscope detection, and missile guidance and communication.
SPY-6 is intended as a scalable system, with each sensor array assembled from Radar Modular
Assemblies (RMA), self-contained radar modules
The transmit-receive modules use new gallium nitride (GaN) semiconductor technology, allowing
for a higher power density than the previous gallium arsenide radar modules.
The new radar will require twice the electrical power as the previous generation while generating
over 35 times as much radar power.
The SPY-6 was not originally designed to perform electronic attacks, but it may have the capability
to do so using its AESA antenna.
The contract will see two variants being integrated into Arleigh Burke-class destroyers.
1.
AN/SPY-6(V)1: Also known as the Air and Missile Defense Radar (AMDR).
It is a 4-sided phased array radar, each with 37 RMAs.
It is estimated to have a 15 dB sensitivity improvement compared to the previous generation
AN/SPY-1 radar, or capable of detecting targets half the size at twice the distance.
It is meant for Flight III Arleigh Burke destroyers 2.
AN/SPY-6(V)4: A 4-sided phased array radar with 24 RMAs.
It is designed to be retrofitted to Flight IIA Arleigh Burke destroyers:
Raytheon Technologies has got the contract for the production of AN/SPY-6(V) radars,
and it’s expected that by 2029, the program's total value will reach $5.9 billion.
With the AN/SPY-6(V)1, USS Jack H. Lucas will see much further and also be able to guide
its wide array of weapons much more accurately.
AN/SPY-6(V)1, along with Aegis Baseline 10 Combat System will be a potent combination.
Viewers may note that Aegis Baseline 10 Combat System has a new architecture that allows
new capabilities to be integrated in three to four weeks instead of in three to four
months.
It is not surprising that Arleigh Burke Destroyer Program Manager Capt.
Seth Miller has stated that DDG 125 brings the most advanced Integrated Air and Missile
Defense capability to the fleet.
We know that radars are like eyes for a platform and a significant upgrade to it brings a lot
to the table.