U.S. Navy’s First Stealth Hypersonic Strike Destroyer USS Zumwalt Completes Builder’s Sea Trials

Huntington Ingalls Industries (HII) has confirmed the successful completion of builder’s sea trials for the USS Zumwalt (DDG 1000), marking the first at-sea validation of the U.S. Navy’s decision to transform its largest and most advanced destroyer into a dedicated hypersonic strike platform. The trials, conducted in the Gulf of Mexico, verify the ship’s performance after an extensive, years-long modernization to integrate the Conventional Prompt Strike (CPS) weapon system.

The silhouette of American naval power just got a silent, stealthy update with a hypersonic edge. The USS Zumwalt, once a controversial next-generation destroyer built for shore bombardment, has successfully returned to sea as the U.S. Navy’s first surface vessel purpose-built for launching hypersonic missiles. This milestone, confirmed by builder Huntington Ingalls Industries (HII), validates a radical and costly conversion aimed at countering advanced peer adversaries like China and Russia.

So, what exactly changed aboard the Zumwalt? The most visible alteration is the complete removal of the ship’s twin 155 mm Advanced Gun Systems (AGS), the very weapons that defined its original mission. In their place, as reported by Naval News, the ship has been fitted with large-diameter vertical launch cells specifically designed for the Conventional Prompt Strike (CPS) hypersonic system. This transformation, which required moving the massive ship onto land at the Pascagoula, Mississippi shipyard for major structural work, fundamentally redefines its role in the fleet.

The Conventional Prompt Strike (CPS) system is a game-changer. It employs a rocket booster to launch a hypersonic glide body that can travel at speeds exceeding Mach 5, maneuvering at those incredible velocities to defeat existing air defense systems. This capability provides the Navy with the ability to hit heavily defended, time-sensitive targets from thousands of kilometers away with minimal warning. As noted in Naval News reporting, while the exact number of missiles aboard is classified, the large size of the CPS rounds means the Zumwalt will carry a limited magazine, emphasizing quality of firepower over quantity.

The choice of the Zumwalt-class hull for this mission is no accident. Its unique Integrated Electric Propulsion system provides the tremendous power needed for future energy-intensive weapons, like lasers or railguns. More importantly, its tumblehome hull design and composite materials give it a drastically reduced radar cross-section, making it one of the stealthiest surface combatants afloat. This survivability is crucial for a platform intended to operate forward in contested environments, acting as a mobile, persistent launch node that is difficult for an enemy to find and target.

The completion of builder’s trials is just the first step. The ship must now undergo further combat systems testing and workups before it is declared operational. The Navy’s plan is to field a trio of these hypersonic arsenals ships, with the USS Michael Monsoor (DDG 1001) and the USS Lyndon B. Johnson (DDG 1002) scheduled to receive identical modifications. This distributes a potent, conventional deterrent capability across multiple stealthy platforms.

The strategic implications are profound. A CPS-armed Zumwalt can leverage its stealth and maritime maneuver to complicate an adversary’s defensive planning, creating uncertainty about the origin of a rapid, unstoppable strike. It represents a shift from the Zumwalt’s failed gun-centric past to a future-focused role that directly addresses the Pentagon’s top priority: deploying long-range, high-speed conventional strike capabilities to deter conflict or prevail in one. The “silent hunter” has been reborn as the “hypersonic spearhead.”