THE DD-21 SHOULD BE ARMED WITH AN 8-INCH GUN
The Navy's lack of interest in naval gunfire has gradually
diminished since World War II. During the Vietnam conflict, over
80% of the targets attacked by our air forces in North Vietnam were in range of the battleships 16-inch guns; including the seemingly invulnerable Than Hoa bridge where 60 aircraft were lost before it was destroyed. Unfortunately, the "carrier air mafia" limited the battleships guns to tactical targets in South Vietnam.
The battleships were rapidly decommissioned after the Vietnam
war, and again after the 1991 Persian Gulf war. Admrials
successfully spread a myth that battleships are manpower intensive, even though one aircraft carrier with its air wing requires more manpower than three modern battleships. All four battleships with a combined number of 36 x 16-inch guns were retired after the end of the Cold war, and nothing has replaced them.
As a result, the Navy is left with 5-inch guns on today's
cruisers and destroyers for naval surface fire support. Despite
tacit acknowlegement by Admirals that ships must prepare to fight along coastal areas of the world, procurement funding for
naval gunfire remains virtually non-existent. Although some money is provided for research each year to quiet the Marines and other critics, other Navy programs always take priority when it comes to providing large sums for procurement.
The Navy plans to "solve" its lack of naval gunfire cheaply by
extending the barrel and recoil on 5-inch guns to increase range.
While this will add few miles to the range of standard ammunition, it is not the solution because the explosive power of their 70 lbs shell is too weak. New 5-inch Extended Range Guided Muntitions (ERGM)s will be useful against a few high-value targets, but they are too expensive for general use, their GPS guidance can be jammed, and their warhead is still too small.
The Navy is designing its next surface combatant for the 21st
century to attack targets ashore--the DD-21. Although this vessel is called "futuristic", the Navy plans to arm it with a 5-inch (127mm) gun, instead of a superior 8-inch (203mm) gun which fire 206lbs projectiles. The Navy has already developed and sucessfully tested the MK-71/60 8-inch gun, which can deliver the firepower of three 5-inch guns at longer ranges. The 8-inch gun is the answer to the surface fire support gap, not expensive long-range 5-inch munitions, not expensive GPS-guided 155mm mortar rounds fired from "vertical guns", and not expensive Tomahawk, Standard, or modified U.S. Army missiles.
Naval gunfire is needed to provide FIREPOWER to blast enemy defensive positions. An MK-71/60 firing 20 8-inch rounds within one minute can provide far greater firepower at a far lower cost than expensive guided munitions. The Navy may complain about maintaining another size of ammunition, however, the Navy plans to phase out 3-inch guns/ammunition over the next few years. In addition, the Navy can modify and use the Army and Marine stockpile of 8-inch ammunition for Self-Propelled, tracked M-110 8-inch guns which are being phased out.
The Navy should incorporate an 8-inch gun into the design of the DD-21, begin procurement of 8-inch guns to be fitted on the Arleigh Burke class destroyers. The Navy does not need to research (e.g. delay) this subject, it needs to begin buying MK71/60 8-inch guns in Fiscal Year 1999. To ensure support, 5-inch and 8-inch replica shells should be placed on display in Pentagon and Congressional corridors so decision makers can see why a 206lbs 8-inch rounds can provide 300% more firepower than the tiny 70 lbs 5-inch round in the fleet today.
RETURN TO 21st CENTURY WEAPONS