Take a look at these fantastic photographs of USN aircraft flying over USS Zumwalt advanced guided-missile destroyer

October 19, 2016 Drones, Maritime Security, Military Aviation
David Cenciotti

MQ-4C, E-2C, C-2A, P-8A, F-35 and SH-60R flew over USS Zumwalt in Chesapeake

USS Zumwalt, the U.S. Navy’s newest and most technologically advanced surface ship, was commissioned in Baltimore, Maryland, on Oct. 15 during the city’s Fleet Week festivities.

First ship of a new class of stealthy multi-mission destroyers (worth $4.4 billion apiece), the futuristic Zumwalt features an advanced power system capable to generate 78 megawatts of power and has the ability to launch TLAMs (Tomahawk Land Attack Missiles) and Evolved Sea Sparrow Missiles (like those used in Yemen recently), as well as a wide array of other anti-ship and anti-submarine weaponry.

Several aircraft flew over the advanced multi-mission guided-missile destroyer as it travelled to its new home port of Sand Diego.

In this post you can find the most interesting photos.

The top one (courtesy of Naval Air Systems Command) is particularly cool. It shows a Northrop Grumman MQ-4C Triton overflying USS Zumwalt.

U.S. Navy’s MQ-4C “Triton” Broad Area Maritime Surveillance (BAMS) unmanned aircraft system (UAS), is an ISR (Intelligence Surveillance Reconnaissance) platform under development that will complement the P-8A Poseidon within the Navy’s Maritime Patrol and Reconnaissance Force family of systems.

The MQ-4C is a much advanced version than the first generation Global Hawk Block 10: it is believed to be a sort of Block 20 and Block 30 Global Hawk hybrid, carrying Navy payload.

With a 130.9-foot wingspan, the drone features an AN/ZPY-3 multi-function active-sensor (MFAS) radar system, that gives the Triton the ability to cover more than 2.7 million square miles in a single mission that can last as long as 24 hours at a time, at altitudes higher than 10 miles, with an operational range of 8,200 nautical miles.

A test proved the gigantic Navy drone’s ability to pass FMV (Full Motion Video) to a Poseidon MPA (Maritime Patrol Aircraft) last June.

The U.S. Navy plans to procure 68 aircraft and 2 prototypes.  The program received Milestone C low-rate initial production approval after a successful Milestone Decision Authority review at the end of September 2016.

161017-N-UZ648-029 CHESAPEAKE BAY, Md. (Oct. 17, 2016) An E-2D Hawkeye and a C-2A Greyhound assigned to Air Test and Evaluation Squadron (VX) 20 fly over USS Zumwalt (DDG 1000) as the ship travels to its new home port of San Diego, California. Zumwalt was commissioned in Baltimore, Maryland, Oct. 15 and is the first in a three-ship class of the Navy's newest, most technologically advanced multi-mission guided-missile destroyers. (U.S. Navy photo by Erik Hildebrandt/Released)
161017-N-UZ648-029
CHESAPEAKE BAY, Md. (Oct. 17, 2016) An E-2C Hawkeye and a C-2A Greyhound assigned to Air Test and Evaluation Squadron (VX) 20 fly over USS Zumwalt (DDG 1000) as the ship travels to its new home port of San Diego, California. Zumwalt was commissioned in Baltimore, Maryland, Oct. 15 and is the first in a three-ship class of the Navy’s newest, most technologically advanced multi-mission guided-missile destroyers. (U.S. Navy photo by Erik Hildebrandt/Released)

 

161017-N-UZ648-054 CHESAPEAKE BAY, Md. (Oct. 17, 2016) A P-8A Poseidon assigned to Air Test and Evaluation Squadron (VX) 20 flies over USS Zumwalt (DDG 1000) as the ship travels to its new home port of San Diego, California. Zumwalt was commissioned in Baltimore, Maryland, Oct. 15 and is the first in a three-ship class of the Navy's newest, most technologically advanced multi-mission guided-missile destroyers. (U.S. Navy photo by Erik Hildebrandt/Released)
161017-N-UZ648-054
CHESAPEAKE BAY, Md. (Oct. 17, 2016) A P-8A Poseidon assigned to Air Test and Evaluation Squadron (VX) 20 flies over USS Zumwalt (DDG 1000) as the ship travels to its new home port of San Diego, California. Zumwalt was commissioned in Baltimore, Maryland, Oct. 15 and is the first in a three-ship class of the Navy’s newest, most technologically advanced multi-mission guided-missile destroyers. (U.S. Navy photo by Erik Hildebrandt/Released)

 

161017-N-CE233-334 CHESAPEAKE BAY, Md. (Oct. 17, 2016) An SH-60R assigned to Air Test and Evaluation Squadron (HX) 21 flies near USS Zumwalt (DDG 1000) as the ship travels to its new home port of San Diego, California. Zumwalt was commissioned in Baltimore, Maryland, Oct. 15 and is the first in a three-ship class of the Navy's newest, most technologically advanced multi-mission guided-missile destroyers. (U.S. Navy photo by Liz Wolter/Released)
161017-N-CE233-334
CHESAPEAKE BAY, Md. (Oct. 17, 2016) An SH-60R assigned to Air Test and Evaluation Squadron (HX) 21 flies near USS Zumwalt (DDG 1000) as the ship travels to its new home port of San Diego, California. Zumwalt was commissioned in Baltimore, Maryland, Oct. 15 and is the first in a three-ship class of the Navy’s newest, most technologically advanced multi-mission guided-missile destroyers. (U.S. Navy photo by Liz Wolter/Released)

 

An F-35 Lightning II Carrier Variant (CV) piloted by U.S. Marine Corps Maj. Robert "Champ" Guyette II, a test pilot from the F-35 Pax River Integrated Test Force (ITF) assigned to the Salty Dogs of Air Test and Evaluation Squadron (VX) 23, flies over the stealth guided-missile destroyer USS Zumwalt (DDG 1000) as the ship transits the Chesapeake Bay on Oct. 17, 2016. USS Zumwalt, the Navy's newest and most technologically advanced surface ship, joined the fleet Oct. 15. The F-35C Lightning II — a next generation single-seat, single-engine strike fighter that incorporates stealth technologies, defensive avionics, internal and external weapons, and a revolutionary sensor fusion capability — is designed as the U.S. Navy’s first-day-of-war, survivable strike fighter. The U.S. Navy anticipates declaring the F-35C combat-ready in 2018. (U.S. Navy photo by Andy Wolfe/Released)
An F-35 Lightning II Carrier Variant (CV) piloted by U.S. Marine Corps Maj. Robert “Champ” Guyette II, a test pilot from the F-35 Pax River Integrated Test Force (ITF) assigned to the Salty Dogs of Air Test and Evaluation Squadron (VX) 23, flies over the stealth guided-missile destroyer USS Zumwalt (DDG 1000) as the ship transits the Chesapeake Bay on Oct. 17, 2016. USS Zumwalt, the Navy’s newest and most technologically advanced surface ship, joined the fleet Oct. 15. The F-35C Lightning II — a next generation single-seat, single-engine strike fighter that incorporates stealth technologies, defensive avionics, internal and external weapons, and a revolutionary sensor fusion capability — is designed as the U.S. Navy’s first-day-of-war, survivable strike fighter. The U.S. Navy anticipates declaring the F-35C combat-ready in 2018. (U.S. Navy photo by Andy Wolfe/Released)
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About David Cenciotti
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David Cenciotti is a journalist based in Rome, Italy. He is the Founder and Editor of “The Aviationist”, one of the world’s most famous and read military aviation blogs. Since 1996, he has written for major worldwide magazines, including Air Forces Monthly, Combat Aircraft, and many others, covering aviation, defense, war, industry, intelligence, crime and cyberwar. He has reported from the U.S., Europe, Australia and Syria, and flown several combat planes with different air forces. He is a former 2nd Lt. of the Italian Air Force, a private pilot and a graduate in Computer Engineering. He has written five books and contributed to many more ones.

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20 Comments

  1. Nothing compares to U.S. Navy airpower, and nothing will for decades, if ever. China and Russia can only dream of this level of seapower. Especially Russia who has a Navy which is going nowhere. Hell their pitiful carrier won’t even leave port without a tug boat ready to tow them back home when they invariably break down. And these people think they can start and win a war against NATO? They’re delusional! Or drunk. Probably drunk. Likely both.

    • Never say never. That’s how you get idiots in Washington thinking everything is A-okay with our nuclear forces.

    • Part of the Russian navy (1 aircraft carrying, heavy cruiser and a nuclear powered (nuclear armed?) battle cruiser) appears to be going to anchor off Syria’s coast, in about a fortnights time.

    • OMG – here we go with another “insightful” rant about the those useless Russians, Chinese, etc, etc.

      How ‘s that Su-27 series thing working for you these days??

  2. That last jet with the ultra-short-range missiles and the pontoons under the wing looked like it had radar reflectors

    • That’s a (stealthy) F-35, made very unstealthy, by hanging a rack with missile on the wing hard point.

        • Yes , he’s correct that hanging missiles and ordnance under the wings makes its no longer stealthy, And honestly every other human being with a brain and a basic knowledge of military aircraft would think the same. Put the computer away dude and go take a walk, get some fresh air, and give it rest!

          • Except that’s not what he said. You need to work on your reading comprehension. Such as it is. Come to think of it, you should probably educate yourself on how stealth works as well.

          • I’ll bet you think stealth is like flipping a switch. That if you’re “stealthy” you can park on top of a NIIIP 91N6E (look it up) and not be seen. But if you put an AIM-9X on a pylon, suddenly an SNR-75 can detect you from 300 miles away right? Judas, kids these days.

      • Still leagues more stealthy than a Super Horner. Please take your uneducated ignorance else where.

      • Compared to the F-35-B, its predecessor was faster and had a longer range. (Lockheed Martin bought the “Yak-141” from Russia, from which the F-35-B was derived)

        I’m not sure its a good idea to have the US fight those Rooskies with planes rejected by Russia some 35 years ago.

        Remember the ‘stealth’ F-117 that was taken down over Yugoslavia?
        Remember when the Persians sold to the Chi-Coms the ‘stealth’ RQ-180 drone the US foolishly flew over Iran?

        The US needs an entirely new set of longer range missiles that are not so easily jammed by Russian Digital Memory Phased Array radars the Russians use in their planes. (The Russians have air to air missiles with a range of 2,500 miles, the US, not so much.) Hanging the missiles on the outside of the plane makes no difference, as the Russians can ‘see’ all planes considered “stealthy”. (And track the Zumwalt from space, so its ‘stealth’ is of no consequence to the Russians.)

        • “Compared to the F-35-B, its predecessor was faster and had a longer
          range. (Lockheed Martin bought the “Yak-141″ from Russia, from which the
          F-35-B was derived)”

          Uh, no. Not even remotely. To be polite.

        • lol 2,500 miles. Maybe you should go learn what you are talking about before posting here.

        • “Compared to the F-35-B, its predecessor was faster and had a longer
          range. (Lockheed Martin bought the “Yak-141″ from Russia, from which the
          F-35-B was derived)”

          Okay parroting that right there? Uhm, yeah. Like a fart in church, let’s just pretend you didn’t actually repeat that BS.

    • it can obviouly haul weapons internally when stealth is required, stealth is not required all the time….only when its providing ISR, hunting enemy aircraft and killing sams.

  3. Gee, it’s so stealthy you can barely make out what it is in the pictures from 10,000 ft…
    Seriously, tell me what this ship can REALLY do an Arleigh Burke cannot at less than 1/2 the cost other than look like it belongs on a TNT TV show…?

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