Navy Taps BIW, Raytheon for Conventional Prompt Strike Work on Zumwalt DDGs

The Zumwalt-class guided-missile destroyer USS Michael Monsoor (DDG 1001) sails in formation during Rim of the Pacific (RIMPAC) 2022. *U.S. NAVY / Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Aleksandr Freutel*

ARLINGTON, Va. — As the U.S. Navy moves to deploy Conventional Prompt Strike missile systems on its three Zumwalt-class (DDG 1000) guided-missile destroyers, the service recently awarded two contracts to further that goal.

The Navy’s Supervisor of Shipbuilding, Conversion, and Repair, Bath, Maine, has awarded General Dynamics Bath Iron Works a $20 million cost-plus-fixed-fee contract modification “for procurement of long-lead time material for the Large Missile Vertical Launch System [LMVLS] launch module fabrication on DDG 1000,” an Aug. 18 Defense Department contract announcement said. Work is expected to be completed by June 2024.

Bath Iron Works is the prime contractor for the Zumwalt-class DDG. Raytheon is the contractor for the ship’s Total Ship Computing Environment.

The Naval Sea Systems Command has awarded Raytheon an $11.2 million firm-fixed-price contract modification for “Total Ship Computing Environment Lab hardware for modernization/technical refresh and Conventional Prompt Strike to support DDG 1000-class combat system activation, sustainment and modernization,” according to an Aug. 19 Defense Department contract announcement. Work is expected to be completed by November 2023.

The Navy plans to field the Conventional Prompt Strike capability on the USS Zumwalt in 2025 as the first platform for the new weapon. The LMVLS is needed because the ship’s existing Mk57 launchers for its Standard and Tomahawk missiles are too small to accommodate the CPS missile.

The Conventional Prompt Strike capability will be fielded later in the decade on the Block V version of the Virginia-class attack submarine.