Wednesday, February 19, 2020

New Fangs for the Navy

Naval Hypersonic Strike 


(link) The Navy intends to deploy its conventional prompt strike hypersonic weapon on Virginia class attack submarines, after previous discussions of putting the weapon on the larger Ohio class guided-missile submarine (SSGN).

The Ohio Class SSGN is a cruise missile carrying submarine, pictured left, mounted (additionally) with two Dry Dock Shelters for MK- 8 SEAL Delivery Vehicles, that I'm intimately familiar with. The SSGN's carry a LOT of Tomahawk cruise missiles and can provide a devastating strike capability.

As the Tomahawks are phased out, I'm sure that the SSGN's will be transitioned to hypersonic weapons - within the next decade.
In its Fiscal Year 2021 budget overview, the Navy outlines a research and development portfolio with 5 percent more funding than this current year – for a total of $21.5 billion – that is aimed at “providing innovative capabilities in shipbuilding (Columbia class), aviation (F-35), weapons (Maritime Strike Tomahawk), hypersonics (Conventional Prompt Strike), unmanned, family of lasers, digital warfare, applied [artificial intelligence], and [U.S. Marine Corps] expeditionary equipment. These technologies are crucial to maintaining DON’s competitive advantage.”