DD(X) Advanced Gun System Demonstrates Sustained Rate of Fire
(Source: US Naval Sea Systems Command; issued Sept. 21, 2005)
WASHINGTON --- The DD(X) National Team and the Navy successfully conducted a rate of fire test for the 155 mm Advanced Gun System (AGS) on Aug. 31. Preliminary results indicate the gun and magazine-handling equipment met or exceeded requirements.
As the primary battery for DD(X), the fully automated AGS is designed to fire up to 10 precision-guided munitions per minute at ranges up to 83 nautical miles. The test took place on the AGS Land Based Test Site at the U.S. Army Dugway Proving Ground, Utah.
“The combination of a 155mm rapid fire gun and long-range, precision munitions will provide DD(X) with a potent strike weapon that will quickly create lethal effects ashore,” said Rear Adm. Charles Goddard, the DD(X) program manager. “AGS and the Long-Range Land Attack Projectile (LRLAP) are meeting or exceeding our expectations, and the success of our test program is testament to the effort of the National Team and U.S. Government personnel. The Army has been an excellent host at Dugway.”
The test successfully demonstrated a sustained maximum rate of fire of at least ten rounds per minute in eight round bursts, and unloaded eight complete rounds from a pallet in 45 seconds or less. The event also tested a sustained firing capability and reliability by demonstrating the AGS Engineering Development Model gun and magazine are capable of unloading several pallets of ammunition.
BAE Systems conducted the test event under subcontract with the DD(X) design agent Northrop Grumman Ship Systems.
DD(X) is the Navy’s next-generation destroyer, tailored for land attack and inland support of joint and coalition forces. Each DD(X) will be armed with two advanced guns and an expandable magazine that can hold up to 920 rounds. AGS has a 10-meter barrel and is specifically designed to fire LRLAP, which uses a rocket motor, canards, and a Global Positioning Satellite guidance system, to maneuver in flight.
During testing this year off of Pt. Mugu, Calif., LRLAP has made successful guided flights up to a world-record distance of 63 nautical miles and has demonstrated accuracy to within meters of the intended target. With an increased rate of fire combined with LRLAP’s precision long-range strike capability, AGS provides three times the fires coverage of today’s shipboard guns.