The incident occurred on the evening of 19/4 while the USS Zumwalt destroyer was docked in Pascagoula, Mississippi. However, the US Navy only announced the information on 22/4. The fire injured three sailors, one of whom required hospitalization and is now in stable condition.

The US Navy is investigating the cause and assessing the damage to the Zumwalt.

The USS Zumwalt destroyer leaving the shipyard in Pascagoula, Mississippi, on 15/1. *Warshipcam*

The incident happened during the Zumwalt destroyer's post-modernization testing at the Huntington Ingalls Industries (HII) shipyard. The project, which began in August 2023, involves replacing the 155 mm advanced gun system (AGS) with a series of C-HGB hypersonic missile launchers.

In December 2024, the Zumwalt left its dry dock, entering the next phase of preparations for its return to active duty. The warship first went to sea on 15/1/2025, after more than two years in the shipyard.

The USS Zumwalt, the first ship of its class, is one of the most expensive military projects in US history. However, it has been disappointing due to numerous design flaws, cost overruns, and delays.

The US Congress reduced the original order from 32 to just three ships. The USS Zumwalt and USS Michael Monsoor have been commissioned, while the USS Lyndon B. Johnson was launched in 2019 and is currently in the testing phase.

The US Government Accountability Office (GAO) reported in September 2020 that each Zumwalt-class ship cost over 9 billion USD, including research and development costs. This contrasts with the projected price of 1.3 billion USD per ship in 1998. The GAO assessed that the Zumwalt class would not achieve full operational capability until after 2025 at the earliest.

The USS Zumwalt destroyer leaving the shipyard in Pascagoula, Mississippi, in December 2024. *HII*

The US Navy initially intended to use the Zumwalt class to attack coastal targets with its AGS cannons. These are the largest cannons built and equipped on US warships since World War II, capable of firing 10 rounds per minute at targets over 150 km away.

However, each long-range land attack projectile (LRLAP) for the AGS costs nearly one million USD. This forced the US Navy to abandon plans to purchase the ammunition and scramble to reconfigure the Zumwalt class's weapon systems. In late 2021, the US Navy announced it would convert the Zumwalt-class destroyers, removing the AGS to equip them with IRCPS long-range hypersonic missiles.

Nguyen Tien (According to AFP, AP, USNI)