Thursday, October 31, 2024
Interesting. The U.S. Navy plans to keep 12 more of its Flight I Arleigh Burke class destroyers in service beyond their originally 35-year expected service life.
Some of the ships, which could also be in line for important upgrades to their defensive and offensive capabilities, are now set to keep sailing into the 2030s. The life extension decision is part of an ambitious Navy-wide strategy rolled out earlier this year that includes a major focus on increasing the readiness of warships and other key assets.
At present, the service has 73 Arleigh Burke destroyers in service.
The importance of Arleigh Burkes has already been on full display in the past year or so in operations in and around the Red Sea and in the defense of Israel. The USS Arleigh Burke and USS Carney, another Flight I type, were among the U.S. ships that helped knock down Iranian missiles and drones heading toward Israeli targets in April. By that time, Carney had already been heavily engaged in the Red Sea against threats launched by Iranian-backed Houthi militants in Yemen.
