Destroyers "Orly Burke". Record holders with rocket weapons
In June 2011, the US Navy Command announced plans for the future of US Navy destroyers. The promising destroyers of the Zumwalt type proved to be too expensive for mass production, so it was decided to leave the Arleigh Burk project as the main destroyer of the Navy. In addition, ships of the Orly Burke type will replenish the fleet until the early thirties of this century. During this time, American shipyards will collect two dozen destroyers. Based on the ship’s usual life expectancy for the United States Navy, it can be assumed that the last Orly Burke-type ship will be decommissioned fleet only in the seventies of this century. Apparently, the US Navy command has its own considerations that allow these destroyers to fit into such a distant future.
To provide an advantage over the USSR Navy in the middle of the 70, American naval sailors wanted to get destroyers of a new project. The recently appeared Spruences, although they were modern ships, still did not have great prospects and demanded, if not a replacement, then at least a serious addition. In addition to this, the Spruance class destroyers, in spite of the available weapons, were listed in official documents as ordinary destroyers of the destroyers, and time and situation required full-fledged destroyers of URO (with guided missile weapons). Work on the formation of the appearance of the new ship and the technical specifications for it took several years and the competition for the development began only in 1980 year. It took about seven years for seven shipbuilding companies to create competitive advance projects, after which three competitors remained: Bath Iron Works, Ingalls Shipbuilding and Todd Shipyard. The third firm was never able to get the “attention” of the competition commission, which is why the construction of the first two ships of the new project was entrusted to Bath Iron Works and Ingalls Shipbuilding, respectively. The project, as well as its lead ship, was named after Admiral Orly Albert Burke, who commanded various destroyer units for most of World War II. The contract with Bath Iron Works for 322 million dollars was concluded in April 85 th. However, the total cost of the head destroyer was several times higher. Taking into account all electronic equipment, weapons, etc. it cost the Pentagon 1,1 billion.
The construction of the USS Arleigh Burke (DDG-51) began at the end of 1988, and on the Independence Day of 1991, it was commissioned. In the future, two shipyards - Bath Iron Works and Ingalls Shipbuilding - another two dozen such ships were built. The first two dozen ships of the new project were made in accordance with the first version of the project, which received the name Flight I. However, soon after the start of construction of the lead project of the first series, American shipbuilders began to modernize. As a result, the USS Mahan destroyer ordered back in 1992 was being completed as the first ship of the second series. The construction of the destroyers Flight II version was more modest: only seven ships. It is alleged that the small second series was initially considered as a transitional link from the first to the third. And so it happened, but contrary to logic, the new version of the project did not have a troika in the index, but the designation IIA. This line was the most numerous. At the moment, the 34 destroyers Orly Burk of the IIA series have been built and their construction continues. The total number of ships under the old plans was to make 75 units, but for now only 62 are ready. Most likely, those 24 destroyers that will be ordered later will be made in the next version of the project.
All existing series of ships - I, II and IIA - have only minor differences in design. They are caused by the features of the installed equipment and the operation of helicopters. The rest of the design is similar. "Orly Burke" of all three series are single-hulled ships with a long forecastle. It is noteworthy that the vast majority of parts of the ship hull are made of high-strength steel grades. The fact is that after the Second World War, American shipbuilders began to actively use aluminum parts in the construction of ships of this class. In engineering terms, this was a good undertaking, but the experience of battles with the participation of aluminum ships forced us to return to steel. Of aluminum on the destroyers "Orly Burke" are made only some details, for example, the mast. The low-seating body has a relatively small camber of the frames in the bow and a relatively wide middle part. This form of the body slightly increases the water resistance, but improves stability and reduces pitching. On ships of the IIA series, a bow bulb was added, compensating for the worsening of the flow due to the characteristics of the hull lines. Watertight bulkheads divide the internal volume of the shell into the 13 compartments. It is curious that the lower decks have a layout that allows you to navigate the ship without limitation, without leaving the upper deck. This was done so that the crew was not at risk if the enemy used weapons of mass destruction. In addition to specially designed interior spaces, protection of the crew from chemical, biological and nuclear weapons is provided by a special ventilation system with multiple filtration of the air taken in from outside.
"Orly Burke" became the first American destroyer squadrons, whose hull and superstructure are made using stealth technology. To reduce radar visibility, the outer surface of the ship's superstructure consists of several large, even panels connected at acute angles, resulting in noticeable dispersion of radio waves. Chimney covers are similarly made. In addition, the exhaust of the power plant before release passes through a special mixing chamber, where it mixes with atmospheric air and is cooled. As a result, ships like the Orly Burke have almost two times less radar and thermal visibility than their predecessors of the Spryens type. The use of large parts to reduce visibility, among other things, allowed the design of the ship to be modular. Thanks to this, 10-15 weeks go by from laying the ship to its launching.
The two-shaft power plant of the Orly Burk destroyers of all series includes four gas-turbine engines LM2500 manufactured by General Electric. Each engine is equipped with a heat insulating circuit, which reduces fuel consumption by almost a quarter, and is installed on shock absorbing supports, which reduce noise. The entire power plant of the ship is a single module, which, if necessary, can be completely dismantled. The maximum possible power of the power plant is within 100-105 thousands of horsepower. As a backup engine for destroyers of all series there are three gas turbine engines Allison 2500. The power of the main and backup engines is transmitted to the two shafts, rotating the five-blade screws of variable pitch.
The destroyers of the Orly Burk project are capable of speeds up to 32 nodes, but the maximum cruising range is achieved at economic speed in 20 nodes. In this case, the first series of destroyers can go up to 4400 nautical miles, and the ships of series II and IIA - for five thousand more. At the same time, in some American sources it is argued that reducing the speed to 18 nodes can bring the cruising range to six thousand miles. However, there is some doubt about this.
The first 28 ships of the Orly Burk type (series I and II) had a crew of 320-350 people: 22-25 officers and 300-330 sailors, warrant officers, etc. The difference in numbers was due to some differences in weapons and in the number of helicopters. On ships of the IIA series, the required number of crews were revised in a number of services and a maintenance group for two helicopters was added. All this led to an increase in the crew to 380 people (32 officer). Americans emphasize the fact that designers and ergonomic experts participated in the layout of the dwellings of the Orly Burk ships. Due to this, with an area of about four square meters per person, it was possible to create all the necessary conditions for normal living.
The Orly Burk destroyer armament includes many systems, but its basis is the Aegis control system (read Idgis). This multifunctional combat information management system (CICS) combines a whole set of detection, control and destruction equipment. The structure of Aegis includes a multifunctional radar with a phased antenna array, radar detection of air and surface targets, electronic warfare equipment, communications equipment, etc. In addition, the Aegis has a number of subsystems for displaying information, transferring data to other ships, and direct weapon control systems.
The basis of the Orly Burk destroyers are various types of missiles. In the fore and aft parts of the ships of all series there are universal mine launchers Mk 41. On ships of series I and II, the bow and stern launcher incorporates 30 and 60 cells, respectively. On the IIA series, the number of cells increased to 32 and 64. A transport and launch container with a BGM-109 Tomahawk cruise missile, an SM-2 or SM-3 anti-aircraft gun, or a block of four containers with anti-aircraft missiles RIM-7 Sea Sparrow can be placed in one cell. Launcher equipment allows you to simultaneously prepare 16 rockets of various types for launch and launch them at a rate of one rocket per second. In addition to the launchers, the Mk 41 has several cranes for loading TPK with missiles. However, the features of the crane equipment and the design of the destroyer do not allow to overload Tomahawk or SM-2 / 3 missiles from supply ships. Loading of such weapons is possible only in the conditions of the base. This disadvantage is compensated for by the flexibility of the armaments nomenclature: if the ship is to attack ground targets, it will receive Tomahawks, if the ship performs air defense functions, Sea Sparrow or SM-2 / 3 are loaded onto it.
The "main caliber" of destroyers artillery armament is the 127-mm Mk 45 installation. At the same time on the first 30 copies of "Orly Burke" was installed Mk 45 Mod. 2, on the rest - Mk 45 Mod. 4. A bulletproof installation can direct 127-mm rifled guns ranging from -15 ° to + 65 ° vertically and in almost all directions horizontally, of course, with the exception of the sector being closed by the ship's superstructure. The rate of fire of the Mk 45 conventional shells reaches 20 rounds per minute, and in the case of guided ammunition, it drops twice. The maximum firing range of the unguided projectile in the Mk 45 mod. 4 is 35-38 kilometers. When using a controlled active-projectile ERGM, this figure increases to 115 kilometers. In the artillery cellar of the Orly Burk destroyers, the ammunition in 680 of various types of shells fits. It takes about 15-16 hours to load all this number of shells.
Anti-aircraft artillery "Orly Burke" can be equipped with various types of weapons. On ships I, II series, as well as on the first several destroyers of the IIA series installed six-barrel 20-mm anti-aircraft guns Mk 15 Phalanx CIWS with a rate of fire to 3000 shots per minute. Fewer ships were equipped with Bushmaster 25-mm automatic cannons, and almost all Orly Burk have several (from three to six) heavy machine guns Browning M2HB on board. Despite its original purpose, M2HB and Bushmaster are not very effective for air defense. Therefore, they are used only for training personnel and firing at small targets, like light boats and motor boats.
For the destruction of more serious surface targets on the destroyers of all three series there are two built torpedo tubes Mk 32 with a total ammunition load of six torpedoes. These can be Mk 46 or Mk 50. When creating the Orly Burk destroyers, the main focus was on rocket armament; therefore, the crew’s reloading of torpedo tubes after the shooting of all six torpedoes is not provided. In earlier versions of the project, engineers considered the use of depth bombs on Orly Burk, but even Flight I did not reach this tactical and technical solution.
One SH-60 helicopter could be based on the deck of the ships of the first and second series. Near the landing pad there was a kerosene tank and a small "warehouse" with weapons - nine Mk 46 torpedoes. Helicopters designed to be based on Orly Burke destroyers have the LAMPS-3 anti-submarine system integrated into the Aegis general integrated control system. Due to the limited volumes of the ships of the first two series, they did not have any means of maintenance or repair of the helicopter, except for those that are on board. Thus, any more or less serious damage led to the fact that the ship was left without rotorcraft "eyes". When creating the IIA version of the project, these shortcomings were taken into account and the shipbuilders made a special helicopter hangar in the stern of the ship's hull, due aviation the destroyer group doubled. This is what required the introduction of a crew for the maintenance of aircraft. Engineers also increased their arsenal for helicopter weapons: on the Orly Burke IIA series it can fit up to 40 torpedoes, air-to-ground missiles of various types, and even several MANPADS.
Destroyers such as "Orly Burke" participated in several military conflicts, starting almost from the very beginning of their service. Iraq in 1996, 1998 and 2003, Yugoslavia in 1999, and a few more operations. Due to its large number (there are sixty ships currently in the ranks), these destroyers participate in virtually every campaign of the US Navy. However, in Russia these ships are better known thanks to the “mission” of the destroyer USS McFaul (DDG-74), which he performed in August 2008. Recall, then, a few days after the end of the infamous "War of Three Eights", this ship brought 55 tons of humanitarian supplies to the Georgian port of Batumi.
In addition to combat successes and interesting design destroyers "Orly Burke" are in some way champions in the US Navy. The fact is that with a full displacement of about 8500 tons (series I), 9000 tons (series II) and 9650 (series IIA), Orly Burk is the most massive American warship with a displacement of more than five thousand tons. This fact suggests that this type of ship is the undoubted success of American shipbuilding. Also in favor of the success of the project says the fact that they were once interested in the Japanese. The 1993-95 included four Congo-type destroyers in the Japanese self-defense forces. In fact, these are the same “Orly Burke”, but modified in such a way as to conform to the legal features of the Japanese fleet.
Like any other project, "Orly Burke" with time had to be replaced by a newer technique. But, unfortunately for US Navy, the promising project of the destroyer URO called Zumwalt turned out to be much more expensive than planned. Thanks to this failure of the Zamvolt, “Orly Burke” will remain in service in the future. When adopting these ships, it was planned that they would serve for about 35 years. But the lack of mass production of the Zumwalt destroyers forced the command of the American fleet to begin the creation of a new version of the project (series III) last year and to outline plans for the purchase of 24 ships over 75 already ordered. Together with the assumption about the possible duration of the Orly Burke service until the seventies of this century, this may help these destroyers set another record. This time regarding the service life.
To provide an advantage over the USSR Navy in the middle of the 70, American naval sailors wanted to get destroyers of a new project. The recently appeared Spruences, although they were modern ships, still did not have great prospects and demanded, if not a replacement, then at least a serious addition. In addition to this, the Spruance class destroyers, in spite of the available weapons, were listed in official documents as ordinary destroyers of the destroyers, and time and situation required full-fledged destroyers of URO (with guided missile weapons). Work on the formation of the appearance of the new ship and the technical specifications for it took several years and the competition for the development began only in 1980 year. It took about seven years for seven shipbuilding companies to create competitive advance projects, after which three competitors remained: Bath Iron Works, Ingalls Shipbuilding and Todd Shipyard. The third firm was never able to get the “attention” of the competition commission, which is why the construction of the first two ships of the new project was entrusted to Bath Iron Works and Ingalls Shipbuilding, respectively. The project, as well as its lead ship, was named after Admiral Orly Albert Burke, who commanded various destroyer units for most of World War II. The contract with Bath Iron Works for 322 million dollars was concluded in April 85 th. However, the total cost of the head destroyer was several times higher. Taking into account all electronic equipment, weapons, etc. it cost the Pentagon 1,1 billion.
The construction of the USS Arleigh Burke (DDG-51) began at the end of 1988, and on the Independence Day of 1991, it was commissioned. In the future, two shipyards - Bath Iron Works and Ingalls Shipbuilding - another two dozen such ships were built. The first two dozen ships of the new project were made in accordance with the first version of the project, which received the name Flight I. However, soon after the start of construction of the lead project of the first series, American shipbuilders began to modernize. As a result, the USS Mahan destroyer ordered back in 1992 was being completed as the first ship of the second series. The construction of the destroyers Flight II version was more modest: only seven ships. It is alleged that the small second series was initially considered as a transitional link from the first to the third. And so it happened, but contrary to logic, the new version of the project did not have a troika in the index, but the designation IIA. This line was the most numerous. At the moment, the 34 destroyers Orly Burk of the IIA series have been built and their construction continues. The total number of ships under the old plans was to make 75 units, but for now only 62 are ready. Most likely, those 24 destroyers that will be ordered later will be made in the next version of the project.
All existing series of ships - I, II and IIA - have only minor differences in design. They are caused by the features of the installed equipment and the operation of helicopters. The rest of the design is similar. "Orly Burke" of all three series are single-hulled ships with a long forecastle. It is noteworthy that the vast majority of parts of the ship hull are made of high-strength steel grades. The fact is that after the Second World War, American shipbuilders began to actively use aluminum parts in the construction of ships of this class. In engineering terms, this was a good undertaking, but the experience of battles with the participation of aluminum ships forced us to return to steel. Of aluminum on the destroyers "Orly Burke" are made only some details, for example, the mast. The low-seating body has a relatively small camber of the frames in the bow and a relatively wide middle part. This form of the body slightly increases the water resistance, but improves stability and reduces pitching. On ships of the IIA series, a bow bulb was added, compensating for the worsening of the flow due to the characteristics of the hull lines. Watertight bulkheads divide the internal volume of the shell into the 13 compartments. It is curious that the lower decks have a layout that allows you to navigate the ship without limitation, without leaving the upper deck. This was done so that the crew was not at risk if the enemy used weapons of mass destruction. In addition to specially designed interior spaces, protection of the crew from chemical, biological and nuclear weapons is provided by a special ventilation system with multiple filtration of the air taken in from outside.
"Orly Burke" became the first American destroyer squadrons, whose hull and superstructure are made using stealth technology. To reduce radar visibility, the outer surface of the ship's superstructure consists of several large, even panels connected at acute angles, resulting in noticeable dispersion of radio waves. Chimney covers are similarly made. In addition, the exhaust of the power plant before release passes through a special mixing chamber, where it mixes with atmospheric air and is cooled. As a result, ships like the Orly Burke have almost two times less radar and thermal visibility than their predecessors of the Spryens type. The use of large parts to reduce visibility, among other things, allowed the design of the ship to be modular. Thanks to this, 10-15 weeks go by from laying the ship to its launching.
The two-shaft power plant of the Orly Burk destroyers of all series includes four gas-turbine engines LM2500 manufactured by General Electric. Each engine is equipped with a heat insulating circuit, which reduces fuel consumption by almost a quarter, and is installed on shock absorbing supports, which reduce noise. The entire power plant of the ship is a single module, which, if necessary, can be completely dismantled. The maximum possible power of the power plant is within 100-105 thousands of horsepower. As a backup engine for destroyers of all series there are three gas turbine engines Allison 2500. The power of the main and backup engines is transmitted to the two shafts, rotating the five-blade screws of variable pitch.
The destroyers of the Orly Burk project are capable of speeds up to 32 nodes, but the maximum cruising range is achieved at economic speed in 20 nodes. In this case, the first series of destroyers can go up to 4400 nautical miles, and the ships of series II and IIA - for five thousand more. At the same time, in some American sources it is argued that reducing the speed to 18 nodes can bring the cruising range to six thousand miles. However, there is some doubt about this.
The first 28 ships of the Orly Burk type (series I and II) had a crew of 320-350 people: 22-25 officers and 300-330 sailors, warrant officers, etc. The difference in numbers was due to some differences in weapons and in the number of helicopters. On ships of the IIA series, the required number of crews were revised in a number of services and a maintenance group for two helicopters was added. All this led to an increase in the crew to 380 people (32 officer). Americans emphasize the fact that designers and ergonomic experts participated in the layout of the dwellings of the Orly Burk ships. Due to this, with an area of about four square meters per person, it was possible to create all the necessary conditions for normal living.
The Orly Burk destroyer armament includes many systems, but its basis is the Aegis control system (read Idgis). This multifunctional combat information management system (CICS) combines a whole set of detection, control and destruction equipment. The structure of Aegis includes a multifunctional radar with a phased antenna array, radar detection of air and surface targets, electronic warfare equipment, communications equipment, etc. In addition, the Aegis has a number of subsystems for displaying information, transferring data to other ships, and direct weapon control systems.
The basis of the Orly Burk destroyers are various types of missiles. In the fore and aft parts of the ships of all series there are universal mine launchers Mk 41. On ships of series I and II, the bow and stern launcher incorporates 30 and 60 cells, respectively. On the IIA series, the number of cells increased to 32 and 64. A transport and launch container with a BGM-109 Tomahawk cruise missile, an SM-2 or SM-3 anti-aircraft gun, or a block of four containers with anti-aircraft missiles RIM-7 Sea Sparrow can be placed in one cell. Launcher equipment allows you to simultaneously prepare 16 rockets of various types for launch and launch them at a rate of one rocket per second. In addition to the launchers, the Mk 41 has several cranes for loading TPK with missiles. However, the features of the crane equipment and the design of the destroyer do not allow to overload Tomahawk or SM-2 / 3 missiles from supply ships. Loading of such weapons is possible only in the conditions of the base. This disadvantage is compensated for by the flexibility of the armaments nomenclature: if the ship is to attack ground targets, it will receive Tomahawks, if the ship performs air defense functions, Sea Sparrow or SM-2 / 3 are loaded onto it.
The "main caliber" of destroyers artillery armament is the 127-mm Mk 45 installation. At the same time on the first 30 copies of "Orly Burke" was installed Mk 45 Mod. 2, on the rest - Mk 45 Mod. 4. A bulletproof installation can direct 127-mm rifled guns ranging from -15 ° to + 65 ° vertically and in almost all directions horizontally, of course, with the exception of the sector being closed by the ship's superstructure. The rate of fire of the Mk 45 conventional shells reaches 20 rounds per minute, and in the case of guided ammunition, it drops twice. The maximum firing range of the unguided projectile in the Mk 45 mod. 4 is 35-38 kilometers. When using a controlled active-projectile ERGM, this figure increases to 115 kilometers. In the artillery cellar of the Orly Burk destroyers, the ammunition in 680 of various types of shells fits. It takes about 15-16 hours to load all this number of shells.
Anti-aircraft artillery "Orly Burke" can be equipped with various types of weapons. On ships I, II series, as well as on the first several destroyers of the IIA series installed six-barrel 20-mm anti-aircraft guns Mk 15 Phalanx CIWS with a rate of fire to 3000 shots per minute. Fewer ships were equipped with Bushmaster 25-mm automatic cannons, and almost all Orly Burk have several (from three to six) heavy machine guns Browning M2HB on board. Despite its original purpose, M2HB and Bushmaster are not very effective for air defense. Therefore, they are used only for training personnel and firing at small targets, like light boats and motor boats.
For the destruction of more serious surface targets on the destroyers of all three series there are two built torpedo tubes Mk 32 with a total ammunition load of six torpedoes. These can be Mk 46 or Mk 50. When creating the Orly Burk destroyers, the main focus was on rocket armament; therefore, the crew’s reloading of torpedo tubes after the shooting of all six torpedoes is not provided. In earlier versions of the project, engineers considered the use of depth bombs on Orly Burk, but even Flight I did not reach this tactical and technical solution.
One SH-60 helicopter could be based on the deck of the ships of the first and second series. Near the landing pad there was a kerosene tank and a small "warehouse" with weapons - nine Mk 46 torpedoes. Helicopters designed to be based on Orly Burke destroyers have the LAMPS-3 anti-submarine system integrated into the Aegis general integrated control system. Due to the limited volumes of the ships of the first two series, they did not have any means of maintenance or repair of the helicopter, except for those that are on board. Thus, any more or less serious damage led to the fact that the ship was left without rotorcraft "eyes". When creating the IIA version of the project, these shortcomings were taken into account and the shipbuilders made a special helicopter hangar in the stern of the ship's hull, due aviation the destroyer group doubled. This is what required the introduction of a crew for the maintenance of aircraft. Engineers also increased their arsenal for helicopter weapons: on the Orly Burke IIA series it can fit up to 40 torpedoes, air-to-ground missiles of various types, and even several MANPADS.
Destroyers such as "Orly Burke" participated in several military conflicts, starting almost from the very beginning of their service. Iraq in 1996, 1998 and 2003, Yugoslavia in 1999, and a few more operations. Due to its large number (there are sixty ships currently in the ranks), these destroyers participate in virtually every campaign of the US Navy. However, in Russia these ships are better known thanks to the “mission” of the destroyer USS McFaul (DDG-74), which he performed in August 2008. Recall, then, a few days after the end of the infamous "War of Three Eights", this ship brought 55 tons of humanitarian supplies to the Georgian port of Batumi.
In addition to combat successes and interesting design destroyers "Orly Burke" are in some way champions in the US Navy. The fact is that with a full displacement of about 8500 tons (series I), 9000 tons (series II) and 9650 (series IIA), Orly Burk is the most massive American warship with a displacement of more than five thousand tons. This fact suggests that this type of ship is the undoubted success of American shipbuilding. Also in favor of the success of the project says the fact that they were once interested in the Japanese. The 1993-95 included four Congo-type destroyers in the Japanese self-defense forces. In fact, these are the same “Orly Burke”, but modified in such a way as to conform to the legal features of the Japanese fleet.
Like any other project, "Orly Burke" with time had to be replaced by a newer technique. But, unfortunately for US Navy, the promising project of the destroyer URO called Zumwalt turned out to be much more expensive than planned. Thanks to this failure of the Zamvolt, “Orly Burke” will remain in service in the future. When adopting these ships, it was planned that they would serve for about 35 years. But the lack of mass production of the Zumwalt destroyers forced the command of the American fleet to begin the creation of a new version of the project (series III) last year and to outline plans for the purchase of 24 ships over 75 already ordered. Together with the assumption about the possible duration of the Orly Burke service until the seventies of this century, this may help these destroyers set another record. This time regarding the service life.
Class Destroyer "Arly Burke"
All the secrets of the miners of the US Navy
All the secrets of the miners of the US Navy
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