Forty-plus ships have sailed into Baltimore for the inaugural fleet week, but one in particular is stealing the show.
It’s America's newest warship, the USS Zumwalt. It weighs more than 15,000 tons, is 600 feet long, cost several billion dollars, and according to the captain, rides like a dream.
“I would say it feels like a really souped up sport utility vehicle. It's not like a Ferrari, but it's like a very big SUV that is made to go very fast,” said Captain James Kirk, the commanding officer.
The USS Zumwalt is a new kind of navy destroyer designed with the latest fighting technology and weaponry.
“A highly survivable destroyer intended to go out and do our Navy's missions and air warfare, surface warfare, and all the missions that go around the world to protect the seas,” Captain Kirk said.
The ship is the most advanced, most expensive, and the largest destroyer in the Navy's fleet. The USS Zumwalt is so smart that it can operate with a much smaller crew. The crew is made up of 147 sailors that's about half of what it takes to run other destroyers.
“A lot less interface with manual valves, more automatically operating,” said Captain Kirk.
Beyond its state-of-the art stealth design, the ship's name is also receiving praise. It's after Admiral Elmo Zumwalt, a leader who helped modernize the Navy.
“He reformed the institution of the Navy to be more just and fair to all its sailors, making sure that all sailors regardless of race, creed, color, faith had an opportunity to serve in whatever capacity that their heart and their passions desired to,” said Kirk.
Zumwalt’s legacy is another part of the honor that comes with serving on the ship.
“One of his core beliefs is peace through strength, peace through power - pax, propter, vim - that is the motto of our ship and it was the motto of the ship he brought into commission in 1958,” said Kirk.
The USS Zumwalt will be commissioned on Saturday at 5 p.m. That's when 147 sailors will run-onboard and the ship is officially placed into active service
For more information on other fleet week events, click here.
