The U.S. Navy is turning a costly mistake into a powerful asset by installing the first shipborne hypersonic weapon aboard the USS Zumwalt, one of its three stealth destroyers. The ship, currently undergoing retrofitting at a Mississippi shipyard, is replacing its unused gun system with missile tubes. Once complete, the Zumwalt will be capable of launching rapid, long-range, precision strikes, increasing its combat value.

The Navy's earlier investment in the Zumwalt-class destroyer, which was criticized for being an expensive failure, is being repurposed into a platform for hypersonic weapons, a move praised by defense analysts. This shift is critical as the U.S. faces increasing pressure to fast-track hypersonic weapons development, especially with recent tests by China and Russia.

Hypersonic weapons, which travel at speeds greater than Mach 5, are harder to intercept due to their speed and maneuverability. One such system, the Conventional Prompt Strike, would launch like a ballistic missile before releasing a hypersonic glide vehicle capable of reaching speeds up to eight times the speed of sound.

The Zumwalt-class destroyers, originally designed for land-attack capabilities with a costly and unused gun system, will now be equipped with four missile tubes, each holding three hypersonic missiles, allowing them to carry a total of 12 hypersonic weapons. Despite their previous setbacks, these ships remain the Navy’s most technologically advanced surface warships, incorporating features like electric propulsion, stealth design, and automated systems.

The Zumwalt has been in dry dock since August 2023 for the installation of the new weapon system and is expected to undergo further testing in 2027 or 2028. While the development of these weapons is expensive, costing nearly $18 billion for 300 missiles over 20 years, experts argue that they are essential for maintaining U.S. military superiority, offering long-range strike capabilities that conventional weapons cannot match.

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