The US Navy will extend the service lives of 12 Arleigh Burke-class destroyers, resulting in an anticipated 48 years of combined additional operational service from those vessels between 2028 to 2035, according to a statement from Secretary Carlos Del Toro, Breaking Defense reports.
, which will be extended for three years, to The Sullivans (DDG-68), also slated for a three-year extension. The Navy in March 2023 opted to extend the life of the class’s lead ship, the Arleigh Burke (DDG-51). Visit Honeywell Aerospace website to learn more. The ships and their associated life extensions included in the announcement are: USS Barry (DDG-52) – three years – FY28 to FY31 USS John Paul Jones (DDG-53) – five years – FY28 to FY33 USS Curtis Wilbur (DDG-54) – five years – FY29 to FY34 USS Stout (DDG-55) – five years – FY29 to FY34 USS John S. McCain (DDG-56) – five years – FY29 to FY34 USS Laboon (DDG-58) – five years – FY30 to FY35 USS Paul Hamilton (DDG-60) – five years – FY30 to FY35 USS Stethem (DDG 63) – one year – FY30 to FY31 USS Carney (DDG-64) – one year – FY31 to FY32 USS Gonzalez (DDG-66) – five years – FY31 to FY36 USS Cole (DDG-67) – five years – FY31 to FY36 USS The Sullivans (DDG-68) – three years – FY32 to FY35 The statement did not include any information about the costs associated with the service life extensions, but did say the Navy had already proposed funding in its budget plans for fiscal 2026 and will update the long-range shipbuilding plan accordingly. Subsequent to this story’s publication, a Navy spokesman told Breaking Defense, “We expect a total cost estimate of $1.3 billion across the FY26 [future years defense program] and $6 billion over 15 years. On average, it will cost about $139.6 million per ship year.” “Today’s budget constrained environment requires the Navy to make prioritized investments to keep more ready players on the field,” Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Lisa Franchetti said in the same statement. “The Navy is actively pulling the right levers to maintain and grow its battle force inventory to support the United States’s global interests in peace and to win decisively in conflict.” AeroVironment Featured Image Spotlight 2024.jpg thumbnail NETWORKS & DIGITAL WARFARE, SPONSORED Small UAS: Accelerating situational awareness on every level There’s a renaissance in small UAS for intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance, both in the way they’re procured and deployed. From BARRY ROSENBERG The choice to extend the service lives of a dozen destroyers is multifaceted one for the sea service. During the Trump administration, lawmakers repeatedly hounded top Navy brass to lay out a plan to reach an overall fleet of 355-manned warships. (The Navy’s current fleet size fluctuates between 285 and 290 ships depending on the time of the year and how it lines up with commissioning and retirement ceremonies.) The service responded with a plan that eventually reached the 355-ship figure in the 2040s and 2050s through a combination of building more destroyers than originally planned as well as extending the service lives of those currently in service. The thought process, Navy leadership said at the time, was that while the fleet’s composition would not be optimal, destroyers were the best choice of ship to have in excess. Since the Trump administration ended in 2021, Navy leadership have overall tamped down on their zealousness to achieve a fleet size of any particular number, but Franchetti has repeatedly called for “more players on the field,” invoking the service’s bottom-line need for a larger fleet. Royal Canadian Navy Halifax-class frigate HMCS Regina Recommended Canada inks $1.85 billion CAD deal with Lockheed for Halifax-class frigate support Lockheed’s Glenn Copeland told Breaking Defense the contract has options to continue through the end of service for the Halifax class. By JUSTIN KATZ On the flip side, service life extensions necessarily mean operating a vessel for longer than intended which can lead to costlier maintenance periods and longer delays depending on a ship’s materiel condition.){kind=link}