US guided-missile destroyer to return to Da Nang

The guided-missile destroyer USS John S. McCain (DDG56), led by Colonel Le Ba Hung, Commander of Destroyer Squadron 7, US Navy's Pacific Fleet, and 280 officers and sailors, is about to return to Da Nang for the third time.

On September 26, the Department of Information and Communications of Da Nang announced that from September 28 to October 1, the guided-missile destroyer USS John S. McCain (DDG56) led by Colonel Le Ba Hung (Vietnamese-American), Commander of Destroyer Squadron 7, Pacific Fleet of the US Navy, along with 280 officers and sailors, will pay a friendly visit to Da Nang.

The guided-missile destroyer USS John S. McCain (DDG56) of the US Navy...

This is the third time the USS John S. McCain has visited Da Nang. Previously, in 2010, the destroyer visited Da Nang while the USS George Washington (CVN 73) aircraft carrier was anchored offshore to welcome a delegation of Vietnamese officials. In April 2014, the USS John S. McCain returned to Da Nang with the rescue ship USNS Safeguard.

During this visit to Da Nang, the destroyer USS John S. McCain will hold a press conference at Tien Sa wharf about the ship's visit; exchange the Code of Conduct for Unannounced Encounters at Sea and a workshop on the Law of the Sea (at the Naval Region 3 Command); exchange expertise on medicine, damage control on board, and preparations before setting sail (USS John S. McCain...). At the same time, there will be a sea exercise with the Vietnamese Navy on the morning of October 1.

The commander, officers and sailors of the destroyer will also pay courtesy visits to the leaders of the Da Nang People's Committee and Naval Region 3; welcome delegations of guests and the press to visit the ship; have a language exchange with Skyline School; have a sports exchange with Dong A University; have an exchange with the Charity Career Center, and perform music on the sidewalk of Bach Dang Street...

The guided-missile destroyer USS John S. McCain is considered “the most capable destroyer in the world.” This is an Arleigh Burke-class heavy destroyer, launched in September 1992, participating in the escort fleet for the “star” of the 7th Fleet – the supercarrier USS George Washington (CVN-73).

USS John S. McCain is designed to minimize radar reflection area with steep slopes. Steel is mainly used for shipbuilding, aluminum alloy is used for antenna masts. Some important areas on the ship are also covered with Kenvar armor. In particular, the ship is capable of operating in radioactive-biological-chemical (NBC) environments. The crew is limited to the hull.

With a displacement of about 8,900 tons, 154m long, 20m wide, equipped with 4 General Electric LM2500-30 gas turbine engines allowing a speed of 30 nautical miles/h, a range of 8,100km (if reaching an average speed of 20 nautical miles/h), the destroyer USS John S. McCain was built using new shipbuilding technologies, equipped with the advanced Aegis system and an extremely powerful defense weapon system, capable of anti-ship, anti-submarine, air defense, and attacking ground targets...

about to return to Da Nang for the 3rd time (Photo: HC)

USS John S. McCain is equipped with the advanced Aegis combat system designed to deal with airborne threats (anti-ship missiles, enemy fighter aircraft), which can be deployed in all environmental conditions. The "heart" of the Aegis system is the AN/SPY-1 multi-function phased array radar linked to the AN/UYK-1 high-speed computer system. The AN/SPY-1 radar automatically searches, detects, and tracks 100 targets simultaneously and guides anti-aircraft missiles to intercept. The radar's operating range is about 160km.

In addition to the integrated combat command system, USS John S. McCain is also equipped with a series of other support radars such as AN/SPS-67(V)2, AN/SPS-73(V)12 sea search radars, AN/SQS-53C sonar system, AN/SLQ-32(V)2 electronic warfare system and many other support devices.

The three most powerful weapons on the USS John S. McCain are all located in the Mk41 vertical launch system, including: the RIM-156SM-2 air defense missile system, the BGM-109 Tomahawk land-attack cruise missile, and the RUM-139 anti-submarine missile. Of these, the RIM-156SM-2 air defense missile system is a weapon that combines the Aegis combat system in defensive operations, with a range of 240km, a flight ceiling of 33,000m, and a cruise speed of Mach 3.5. This missile is equipped with a high-explosive fragmentation warhead. The inertial navigation system and an active terminal seeker.

The BGM-109 Tomahawk long-range land-attack cruise missile has a range of 1,104km, a cruise speed of 880km/h, and is guided by a high-precision positioning system (GPS, TERCOM, DSMAC). The Tomahawk missile is often compared to a drone, but it does not conduct reconnaissance but attacks targets with great destructive power.

The RUM-139 anti-submarine missile has a range of about 22km using an inertial guidance system, also launched from the Mk41 system. The most special feature of this missile is that instead of carrying an explosive warhead, it carries a Mk46 or Mk54 homing torpedo. When the RUM-139 is fired at a certain location, the missile automatically "releases" the torpedo to find its target.

To support anti-ship and short-range air defense operations, the USS John S. McCain is also equipped with a 127mm naval gun, a Phalanx anti-aircraft artillery system, a 25mm gun, a 12.7mm anti-aircraft machine gun, and a Mk32 torpedo launcher. In addition, the ship's deck is also designed with a helicopter hangar and landing pad to serve the SH-60 anti-submarine helicopter team.

However, to assess the true capabilities of a ship, in addition to equipment and weapons, we must also consider the activities of the officers, sailors and staff on board. And the reason why the USS John S. McCain is considered “the most capable destroyer in the world” is for that reason./.

According to Infonet