http://www.onr.navy.mil/en/Media-Center/...e-Delivery.aspx

About time!

They have been working on that for a loooong time, I heard about at least feasability studies in USN circles in the early nineties... wow time flies...
The possibilities with railguns are truly immense, a real multipurpose system, I just wonder about powerconsumption.

Staffan

yeah, i get like monthly updates on it for the last 5 or 6 years..


navy is about to accept delivery of the 32 mj prototype.

http://www.digitaltrends.com/internation...e-coming-weeks/

I've heard about dedicated reactors for these weapon systems...

WC

I know we have a few salts around here that can and hopefully will give much better answers. But my understanding is that, between all of the systems of sensors, weapons, lighting, and communications and navigation gear, there is not a lot of electrical 'wiggle room' in modern warships, limiting upgradability for power-hungry railguns. So, it may not be until the next block or class of surface combatants before you see operational examples of railguns - with ships built around them.

I can't talk for any US warships but I know a bit about the modern danish ones and they are designed to be modular from the keel up and does allow for a lot of upgrading possibilities, from mission packages to electronics, however powerplants are a different matter alltogether.
it is easy enough to remove the 3 inch fore on the new danish frigate and replace it with a 5 inch turret, all in the design, but powerplants are tucked away and not easily accessible.

Staffan

Yes, power consumption would be an issue, which is why the Ford-class carriers are using an entirely new electrical generation and distribution system than that used on the Nimitz class boats (12kV vs. 4160V), as the electromagnetic railguns used as catapults in the new design would have to be prohibitively large. There was discussion of the CG(X) being nuclear powered, but nothing really ever came of those plans that I'd heard of, nor are there any current plans to build any new nuclear-powered surface combatants other than continuing with carriers. So I have no clue how they're planning on balancing that out yet.

My thought is, since we're still talking about buying a prototype, the Navy's still at least 10 years away from figuring out how best to use these things, and how to implement them on a future ship design, which means we're looking at 15-20 years before they're in service.