The ships are armed with 56 Raytheon Tomahawk cruise missiles, with a combination of land-attack (TLAM) missiles with a Tercom aided navigation system, and anti-ship missiles with inertial guidance. The Standard SM-2MR block 4 surface-to-air missiles with command / inertial guidance remain at the centre of the Aegis system. Both Tomahawk and Standard missiles are fired from two Lockheed Martin mk41 vertical launch systems.
The first test of the weapon control system for the new Tactical Tomahawk (block IV) took place on USS Stethem (DDG 63) in October 2002. Full-rate production deliveries of the missile began in May 2004 and it entered service with the US Navy in September 2004. The new missile has the capability for mission planning onboard the launch vessel, in-flight targeting and loitering.
In December 2004, Raytheon began deliveries of the latest version of the Standard Missile, the SM-3. SM-3, based on hit-to-kill technology, has a kinetic warhead and is for deployment against short to medium-range ballistic missiles. The SM-3 block 1B missile, under development, also incorporates a two-colour infrared seeker and a throttling divert and attitude control system.
There are also eight Boeing Harpoon surface-to-surface missiles and Lockheed Martin ASROC vertical launch anti-submarine systems, armed with the mk50 or mk46 torpedo. ASROC is launched from the mk41 VLS.
Arleigh Burke vessels are fitted with the evolved Sea Sparrow missile (ESSM), developed by Raytheon. ESSM is an advanced ship self-defence missile for use against anti-ship missiles.
"Vital areas are protected by two layers of steel and 70t of Kevlar armour."
In July 2002, the first ESSM sea launch was carried out by Flight IIA vessel, USS Shoup. The missile was launched from the mk41 VLS and the Aegis AN/SPY-1D radar successfully guided the missile to destroy the target. ESSM passed US Navy operational testing and evaluation (OPEVAL) in September 2003 and entered full rate production in March 2004. USS Chaffee and McCampbell have been equipped with the new missiles.
There is one BAE Systems Land & Armaments (formerly United Defense) 127mm mk45 gun with Kollmorgen mk46 mod 1 electro-optic sight and two Raytheon / General Dynamics 20mm, six-barrelled Phalanx mk15 close-in weapon systems (CIWS). Phalanx block 1B has been installed on USS Howard, Bulkeley and Cole and is being installed on new build vessels.
The Phalanx 1B upgrade includes a Thales Optronics HDTI5-2F thermal imager, improved Ku-band radar and longer gun barrel providing an increased rate of fire of 4,500rpm. Flight IIA vessel USS Winston Churchill is the first ship to be fitted with the US Navy's most advanced gun, the mk45 mod 4, which can fire extended-range guided munitions (ERGM) to a range of nearly 60 miles. The Raytheon 127mm ERGM procurement was cancelled in July 2008.
The destroyers are fitted with six (two triple) 324mm mk32 mod 14 torpedo tubes, which launch ATK (AlliantTechsystems) mk46 or mk50 active / passive homing
