Aegis combat system - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

The Aegis Combat System is an integrated naval weapons system developed by the Missile and Surface Radar Division of RCA

RCA

RCA Corporation, founded as the Radio Corporation of America, was an American electronics company in existence from 1919 to 1986. The RCA trademark is currently owned by the French conglomerate Technicolor SA through RCA Trademark Management S.A., a company owned by Technicolor...

, and now produced by Lockheed Martin

Lockheed Martin

Lockheed Martin is an American global aerospace, defense, security, and advanced technology company with worldwide interests. It was formed by the merger of Lockheed Corporation with Martin Marietta in March 1995. It is headquartered in Bethesda, Maryland, in the Washington Metropolitan Area....

. It uses powerful computers and radars to track and guide weapons to destroy enemy targets.

Initially used by the United States Navy

United States Navy

The United States Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. The U.S. Navy is the largest in the world; its battle fleet tonnage is greater than that of the next 13 largest navies combined. The U.S...

, Aegis is now used also by the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force

Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force

The , or JMSDF, is the naval branch of the Japan Self-Defense Forces, tasked with the naval defense of Japan. It was formed following the dissolution of the Imperial Japanese Navy after World War II....

, Spanish Navy, Royal Norwegian Navy

Royal Norwegian Navy

The Royal Norwegian Navy is the branch of the Norwegian Defence Force responsible for naval operations. , the RNoN consists of approximately 3,700 personnel and 70 vessels, including 5 heavy frigates, 6 submarines, 14 patrol boats, 4 minesweepers, 4 minehunters, 1 mine detection vessel, 4 support...

, and Republic of Korea Navy

Republic of Korea Navy

The Republic of Korea Navy or the ROK Navy is the branch of the South Korean armed forces responsible for conducting naval operations and amphibious landing operations. The ROK Navy includes the Republic of Korea Marine Corps, which is a quasi-autonomous organization...

. Over 100 Aegis-equipped ships have been deployed in five navies worldwide. The Royal Australian Navy

Royal Australian Navy

The Royal Australian Navy is the naval branch of the Australian Defence Force. Following the Federation of Australia in 1901, the ships and resources of the separate colonial navies were integrated into a national force: the Commonwealth Naval Forces...

has selected the Aegis system for placement on its new Air Warfare Destroyers.

The word "Aegis

Aegis

An aegis is a large collar or cape worn in ancient times to display the protection provided by a high religious authority or the holder of a protective shield signifying the same, such as a bag-like garment that contained a shield. Sometimes the garment and the shield are merged, with a small...

" is a reference that dates back to Greek mythology, with connotations of a protective shield, as aegis was the shield of Athena.

Overview

The Aegis Combat System (ACS) is an advanced command and control (command and decision, or C&D, in Aegis parlance), and weapon control system (WCS) that uses powerful computers and radars to track and guide weapons to destroy enemy targets.

The ACS is composed of the Aegis Weapon System (AWS), the fast-reaction component of the Aegis Anti-Aircraft Warfare (AAW) capability, along with the Phalanx Close In Weapon System (CIWS)

Phalanx CIWS

The Phalanx CIWS is an anti-ship missile defense system. It is a close-in weapon system and was designed and manufactured by the General Dynamics Corporation, Pomona Division...

, the Mark 41 Vertical Launch System

Mark 41 Vertical Launch System

The Mark 41 Vertical Launch System is a shipborne missle canister launching system which provides a rapid-fire launch capability against hostile threats. The Vertical Launch System concept was derived from work on the Aegis Combat System. Refinement of the concept continued through the 1960s and...

. Mk 41 VLS adopts modular design concept, which result in different versions that vary in size and weight. The length comes in three sizes: 209 in (5.3 m) for the self-defense version, 266 in (6.8 m) for the tactical version, and 303 in (7.7 m) for the strike version. The empty weight for a 8-cell module is 26800 lb (12,156.3 kg) for the self-defense version, 29800 lb (13,517.1 kg) for the tactical version, and 32000 lb (14,515 kg) for the strike version, thus incorporating anti-submarine warfare (ASW) systems, and Tomahawk

BGM-109 Tomahawk

The Tomahawk is a long-range, all-weather, subsonic cruise missile. Introduced by General Dynamics in the 1970s, it was designed as a medium- to long-range, low-altitude missile that could be launched from a surface platform. It has been improved several times and, by way of corporate divestitures...

Land Attack Cruise Missiles (TLAM). Shipboard torpedo and naval gunnery systems are also integrated.

AWS, the heart of Aegis, comprises the AN/SPY-1

AN/SPY-1

The AN/SPY-1 is a US naval radar system manufactured by Lockheed Martin. The array is a passive electronically scanned system and is a key component of the Aegis Combat System. The system is computer controlled, using four complementary antennas to provide 360 degree coverage...

Radar, MK 99 Fire Control System, WCS, the Command and Decision Suite, and SM-2 Standard Missile

Standard missile

Standard Missile can refer to a family of several different American missiles:* RIM-66 Standard , a medium range surface-to-air missile, the successor of the RIM-24 Tartar missile...

systems. The Aegis Combat System is controlled by an advanced, automatic detect-and-track, multi-function three-dimensional passive electronically scanned array

Passive electronically scanned array

A passive electronically scanned array , contrary to its active counterpart AESA, is a phased array which has a central radiofrequency source , sending energy into phase shift modules, which then send energy into the various emitting elements in the front of the antenna...

radar

Radar

Radar is an object-detection system which uses radio waves to determine the range, altitude, direction, or speed of objects. It can be used to detect aircraft, ships, spacecraft, guided missiles, motor vehicles, weather formations, and terrain. The radar dish or antenna transmits pulses of radio...

, the AN/SPY-1. Known as "the Shield of the Fleet", the SPY high-powered (6 megawatt) radar is able to perform search, tracking, and missile guidance functions simultaneously with a track capacity of well over 100 targets at more than 100 nautical miles (185.2 km). However the AN/SPY-1 Radar is mounted lower than the AN/SPS-49 radar system and so has a reduced radar horizon

Radar horizon

The radar Horizon is a critical area of performance for aircraft detection systems that is defined by the distance at which the radar beam raise enough above the Earth surface to make detection of a target at low level impossible. It is associated with the low elevation region of performance and...

.

The Aegis system communicates with the Standard missiles through a radio frequency (RF) uplink using the AN/SPY-1 radar for mid-course guidance of the missile during engagements, but still requires the AN/SPG-62 radar for terminal guidance. This means that with proper scheduling of intercepts, a large number of targets can be engaged simultaneously.

The computer

Computer

A computer is a programmable machine designed to sequentially and automatically carry out a sequence of arithmetic or logical operations. The particular sequence of operations can be changed readily, allowing the computer to solve more than one kind of problem...

-based command-and-decision element is the core of the Aegis Combat System. This interface makes the ACS capable of simultaneous operation against almost all kinds of threats. The Aegis Ballistic Missile Defense System

Aegis Ballistic Missile Defense System

The Aegis Ballistic Missile Defense System is a United States Department of Defense Missile Defense Agency program developed to provide defense against ballistic missiles. It is part of the United States national missile defense strategy...

program is intended to enable the Aegis system to act in a sea-based ballistic missile defense function, to counter short- and medium-range ballistic missile

Ballistic missile

A ballistic missile is a missile that follows a sub-orbital ballistic flightpath with the objective of delivering one or more warheads to a predetermined target. The missile is only guided during the relatively brief initial powered phase of flight and its course is subsequently governed by the...

s of the variety typically employed by a number of potential opponent states.

Development

Aegis was initially developed by the Missile and Surface Radar Division of RCA

RCA

, which was then acquired by General Electric

General Electric

General Electric Company , or GE, is an American multinational conglomerate corporation incorporated in Schenectady, New York and headquartered in Fairfield, Connecticut, United States...

. The division responsible for the Aegis systems became Government Electronic Systems. This, and other GE Aerospace businesses, were sold to Martin Marietta

Martin Marietta

Martin Marietta Corporation was an American company founded in 1961 through the merger of The Martin Company and American-Marietta Corporation. The combined company became a leader in chemicals, aerospace, and electronics. In 1995, it merged with Lockheed Corporation to form Lockheed Martin. The...

in 1992. This became part of Lockheed Martin

Lockheed Martin

in 1995.

By the late 1950s, the US Navy replaced guns with guided missiles on its ships. These were sufficient weapons but by the late 1960s, the U.S. Navy recognized that reaction time, firepower, and operational availability in all environments did not match the anti-ship missile threat.

As a result, the US Navy decided to develop a program to defend ships from anti-ship missile threats. An Advanced Surface Missile System (ASMS) was promulgated and an engineering development program was initiated to meet the requirements. ASMS was re-named "Aegis" in December 1969 after the aegis

Aegis

, the shield

Shield

A shield is a type of personal armor, meant to intercept attacks, either by stopping projectiles such as arrows or redirecting a hit from a sword, mace or battle axe to the side of the shield-bearer....

of the Greek god

Greek mythology

Greek mythology is the body of myths and legends belonging to the ancient Greeks, concerning their gods and heroes, the nature of the world, and the origins and significance of their own cult and ritual practices. They were a part of religion in ancient Greece...

Zeus

In the ancient Greek religion, Zeus was the "Father of Gods and men" who ruled the Olympians of Mount Olympus as a father ruled the family. He was the god of sky and thunder in Greek mythology. His Roman counterpart is Jupiter and his Etruscan counterpart is Tinia.Zeus was the child of Cronus...

. The name was invented at the suggestion of Captain L. J. Stecher, a former Tartar Weapon System

Tartar Guided Missile Fire Control System

The Tartar Guided Missile Fire Control System is an air defense system developed by the United States Navy to defend warships from air attack. Since its introduction the system has been improved and sold to several United States allies.-Description:...

manager, after an internal U.S. Navy contest to name the ASMS program was initiated. Captain Stecher also submitted a possible acronym of Advanced Electronic Guided Interceptor System although this definition was never used. The main manufacturer of the Aegis combat system, Lockheed Martin

Lockheed Martin

, makes no mention of the name Aegis being an acronym, nor does the U.S. Navy

United States Navy

.

Because the Aegis combat system is the key component of several cruiser and destroyer class vessels, the ships are often incorrectly referred to as "Aegis class cruisers" or "Aegis class destroyers". In reality, the radar system and the class of ship it is installed on are unrelated to each other.
The first Engineering Development Model (EDM-1) was installed in a test ship, the USS Norton Sound

USS Norton Sound (AVM-1)

USS Norton Sound was originally built as a by Los Angeles Shipbuilding and Drydock Company in San Pedro, California. She was named for Norton Sound, a large inlet in West Alaska, between the Seward Peninsula and the mouths of the Yukon, north-east of the Bering Sea.-Career:Norton Sound was laid...

, in 1973. During this time frame, the Navy envisioned installing the Aegis combat system on both a nuclear powered "Strike Cruiser"

Strike cruiser

A strike cruiser was a proposal from DARPA on the next generation of cruisers in the late 1970s. It was to be a guided missile attack cruiser with a displacement of around , armed and equipped with SM-2, Harpoon and Tomahawk missiles, an 8-inch gun, and the Aegis phased array radar system.A...

(or CSGN) and a conventionally powered destroyer (originally designated DDG 47). The CSGN was to be a new, 17,200 ton cruiser design based on the earlier California-

California class cruiser

The California class cruisers were a set of two of nuclear-powered guided missile cruisers operated by the United States Navy between 1974 and 1998. Other than their nuclear power supply and lack of helicopter hangars, ships of the California class were comparable to other guided missile cruisers...

and Virginia-

Virginia class cruiser

The Virginia-class nuclear guided-missile cruisers were a series of four double-ended guided-missile cruisers commissioned in the late 1970s, which served in the US Navy until the mid- to late-1990s...

class cruisers. The Aegis destroyer design would be based on the gas turbine powered Spruance class. When the CSGN was cancelled, the Navy proposed a modified Virginia class design (CGN 42) with a new superstructure designed for the Aegis combat system and with a displacement of 12,100 tons. As compared to the CSGN, this design was not as survivable and had reduced command and control facilities for an embarked flag officer. Ultimately this design was also cancelled during the Carter Administration due to its increased cost compared to the non-nuclear DDG 47. With the cancellation of the CGN 42, the DDG 47 Aegis destroyer was redesignated as CG 47, a guided missile cruiser.

The first cruiser of this class was the Ticonderoga

USS Ticonderoga (CG-47)

USS Ticonderoga , fifth to bear the name, was a guided-missile cruiser in the service of the United States Navy. Homeported in Pascagoula, Mississippi, the "Tico" was the lead ship of her class.-History of the ship:...

, which used two twin-armed Mark-26 missile launchers, fore and aft. The commissioning of the sixth ship of the class, the Bunker Hill

USS Bunker Hill (CG-52)

USS Bunker Hill is a Ticonderoga class guided missile cruiser laid down by Litton-Ingalls Shipbuilding Corporation at Pascagoula, Mississippi on 11 January 1984, launched on 11 March 1985 and commissioned on 20 September 1986...

opened a new era in surface warfare as the first Aegis ship outfitted with the Martin Marietta

Martin Marietta

Mark-41 Vertical Launching System

Vertical Launching System

A vertical launching system is a system for holding and firing missiles on surface ships and submarines used by many navies around the world. Each VLS system consists of a number of cells, which can hold one or more missiles ready for firing...

(VLS), allowing a wider missile selection, more firepower, and survivability. The improved AN/SPY-1B radar went to sea in the Princeton

USS Princeton (CG-59)

USS Princeton is a guided missile cruiser serving in the United States Navy. Armed with naval guns and anti-air, anti-surface, and anti-submarine missiles, plus other weapons, she is equipped for surface-to-air, surface-to-surface, and anti-submarine warfare. She also is the home of two Seahawk...

, ushering in another advance in Aegis capabilities. The Chosin

USS Chosin (CG-65)

USS Chosin is a Ticonderoga-class guided-missile cruiser serving in the United States Navy. She is named in honor of the Battle of Chosin Reservoir of the Korean War. Commissioned in 1991, she is currently serving in the Pacific Fleet, based in Pearl Harbor. She has participated in Operation...

introduced the AN/UYK-43

AN/UYK-43

The AN/UYK-43 was the standard 32-bit computer of the United States Navy for surface ship and submarine platforms, starting in 1984. Some 1250 units had been delivered through 2000. The size of a refrigerator, it replaced the older AN/UYK-7, both built by UNISYS and shared the same instruction set...

/44

AN/UYK-44

The AN/UYK-44 is the standard 16-bit computer of the U.S. Navy used in surface ship, submarine, and ground C4I platforms....

computers, which provide increased processing capabilities.

During 1980, a destroyer was designed using an improved sea-keeping hull form, reduced infrared

Infrared

Infrared light is electromagnetic radiation with a wavelength longer than that of visible light, measured from the nominal edge of visible red light at 0.74 micrometres , and extending conventionally to 300 µm...

and radar cross-sections, and upgrades to the Aegis Combat System. The first ship of the Arleigh Burke class

Arleigh Burke class destroyer

The Arleigh Burke class of guided missile destroyers is the United States Navy's first class of destroyer built around the Aegis combat system and the SPY-1D multi-function phased array radar. The class is named for Admiral Arleigh "31-Knot" Burke, the most famous American destroyer officer of...

, the USS Arleigh Burke

USS Arleigh Burke (DDG-51)

The USS Arleigh Burke , named for Admiral Arleigh A. Burke, USN , is the lead ship of the Arleigh Burke-class guided missile destroyers. She was laid down by the Bath Iron Works company at Bath, Maine, on 6 December 1988, and launched on 16 September 1989 by Mrs. Arleigh Burke...

, was commissioned during 1991.

Flight II of the Arleigh Burke class, introduced in 1992, incorporated improvements to the SPY radar, and to the Standard missile, active electronic countermeasures, and communications. Flight IIA, introduced in 2000, added a helicopter

Helicopter

A helicopter is a type of rotorcraft in which lift and thrust are supplied by one or more engine-driven rotors. This allows the helicopter to take off and land vertically, to hover, and to fly forwards, backwards, and laterally...

hangar with one anti-submarine helicopter and one armed attack helicopter. The Aegis program has also projected reducing the cost of each Flight IIA ship by at least $30 million.

Aegis Open Architecture

The Multi-Mission Signal Processor (MMSP) will be installed in US Navy ships starting in 2012. This will result in the merger with Aegis Ballistic Missile Defense System

Aegis Ballistic Missile Defense System

Technical development and issues

There are some reports that Aegis radar systems on board some individual warships are not being maintained properly. A Navy panel headed by retired Vice Adm. Phillip Balisle has issued the "Balisle report," which asserts that over-emphasis on saving money, including cuts in crews and streamlined training and maintenance, has led to a drastic decline in readiness, and has left Aegis combat systems in low state of readiness.

Iran Air Flight 655

The Aegis system was involved in a disaster in which USS Vincennes

USS Vincennes (CG-49)

The fourth USS Vincennes is a U.S. Navy Ticonderoga class Aegis guided missile cruiser. On July 3, 1988, the ship shot down Iran Air Flight 655 over the Persian Gulf, killing all 290 civilian passengers on board, including 38 non-Iranians and 66 children.The ship was launched 14 April 1984 and...

shot down Iran Air Flight 655

Iran Air Flight 655

Iran Air Flight 655 was a civilian jet airliner shot down by U.S. missiles on 3 July 1988, over the Strait of Hormuz, toward the end of the Iran–Iraq War...

during 1988 resulting in 290 civilian deaths.

It was determined by a formal military investigation that the Aegis system was completely operational and did not have any maintenance problems. The investigation ruled that had the commanding officer

Commanding officer

The commanding officer is the officer in command of a military unit. Typically, the commanding officer has ultimate authority over the unit, and is usually given wide latitude to run the unit as he sees fit, within the bounds of military law...

relied on the complete tactical data displayed by the Aegis system the engagement might never have occurred. Additionally, psychological effects of the crew subconsciously manipulating the data to accord with a predefined scenario greatly contributed to the false identification. The investigation found that the Aegis Combat System did not contribute to the incident, but did aid in the investigation by means of recorded target data. The discrepancies are as follows:

Aegis Data Report	Personnel Report To CO
Iran Air Flight 655 continuously ascended in duration of flight	Iran Air Flight 655, after attaining 9000 to 12000 ft (3,657.6 m)., reportedly descended on an attack vector on USS Vincennes
Iran Air Flight 655 continuously squawked Mode III identification, friend or foe (IFF) in duration of flight	Iran Air Flight 655 reportedly squawked Mode II (Iranian F-14 Tomcat F-14 Tomcat The Grumman F-14 Tomcat is a supersonic, twin-engine, two-seat, variable-sweep wing fighter aircraft. The Tomcat was developed for the United States Navy's Naval Fighter Experimental program following the collapse of the F-111B project... ) IFF for a moment; personnel proceeded to re-label the target from "Unknown Assumed Enemy" to "F-14"
Iran Air Flight 655 held consistent climb speed in duration of flight	Iran Air Flight 655 was reported to increase in speed to an attack vector similar to an F-14 Tomcat

Aegis in other navies

Ship Class	Operator	Total Ships
Atago Atago class destroyer The is an improved version of the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force 's Kongō class destroyers. It is a Japanese variant of the United States Navy Arleigh Burke-class destroyer ....		2
Kongō Kongo class destroyer The of guided missile destroyers serves as the core ship of the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force 's Escort Flotillas. They are a modification of the United States Navy's Arleigh Burke class .-Design:...		4
King Sejong the Great	ROKN Republic of Korea Navy The Republic of Korea Navy or the ROK Navy is the branch of the South Korean armed forces responsible for conducting naval operations and amphibious landing operations. The ROK Navy includes the Republic of Korea Marine Corps, which is a quasi-autonomous organization...	3
Álvaro de Bazán Álvaro de Bazán class frigate The Álvaro de Bazán class are a new class of Aegis combat system-equipped air defense frigates entering service with the Spanish Navy...		5
Hobart class		3
Fridtjof Nansen Fridtjof Nansen class frigate The Fridtjof Nansen-class frigates are the main surface combatant units of the Royal Norwegian Navy. The ships are named after famous Norwegian explorers, with the lead ship of the class bearing the name of Fridtjof Nansen, the Norwegian scientist, explorer and humanitarian.Five ships were ordered...		5
Arleigh Burke Arleigh Burke class destroyer The Arleigh Burke class of guided missile destroyers is the United States Navy's first class of destroyer built around the Aegis combat system and the SPY-1D multi-function phased array radar. The class is named for Admiral Arleigh "31-Knot" Burke, the most famous American destroyer officer of...		60 (75)
Ticonderoga Ticonderoga class cruiser The Ticonderoga class of missile cruisers is a class of warships in the United States Navy, first ordered and authorized in FY 1978. The class uses phased-array radar and was originally planned as a class of destroyers...		22
Total		103

The Royal Australian Navy
Royal Australian Navy
The Royal Australian Navy is the naval branch of the Australian Defence Force. Following the Federation of Australia in 1901, the ships and resources of the separate colonial navies were integrated into a national force: the Commonwealth Naval Forces...

is building three Hobart class air warfare destroyers, which will have Aegis as the core of their combat systems.
The Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...

ese government operates four Kongō-class
Kongo class destroyer
The of guided missile destroyers serves as the core ship of the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force 's Escort Flotillas. They are a modification of the United States Navy's Arleigh Burke class .-Design:...

destroyer
Destroyer
In naval terminology, a destroyer is a fast and maneuverable yet long-endurance warship intended to escort larger vessels in a fleet, convoy or battle group and defend them against smaller, powerful, short-range attackers. Destroyers, originally called torpedo-boat destroyers in 1892, evolved from...

s of a modified Arleigh Burke design from 1993. Two improved units known as the Atago class
Atago class destroyer
The is an improved version of the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force 's Kongō class destroyers. It is a Japanese variant of the United States Navy Arleigh Burke-class destroyer ....

were purchased in 2000 and the first ship of this class, Atago (DDG 177), was commissioned March 15, 2007.
The government of Norway
Norway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...

is procuring five ships of Spanish manufacture which include a U.S.-sourced Aegis system integrated onto the ships, as the Fridtjof Nansen class
Fridtjof Nansen class frigate
The Fridtjof Nansen-class frigates are the main surface combatant units of the Royal Norwegian Navy. The ships are named after famous Norwegian explorers, with the lead ship of the class bearing the name of Fridtjof Nansen, the Norwegian scientist, explorer and humanitarian.Five ships were ordered...

. The first unit of this type, Fridtjof Nansen
HNoMS Fridtjof Nansen (F310)
HNoMS Fridtjof Nansen is a frigate of the Royal Norwegian Navy. Launched on April 5, 2006, she is the lead ship of the Fridtjof Nansen class of warships.-Counter Piracy:...

, was launched on June 3, 2004. The second of five Norwegian Nansen-class frigates, the Roald Amundsen (F311), completed its sea trials and entered service in June 2007. The 5,200 ton Nansen-class ships are being built in Spain and cost $600 million each.
Republic of Korea (South Korea) is currently operating 3 Aegis variants. The first ship of the class, King Sejong the Great, was launched on May 25, 2007. The second Aegis destroyer was launched in November 2008 and was given the name Yulgok Yi I
Yi I
Yi I was one of the two most prominent Korean Confucian scholars of the Joseon Dynasty, the other being his older contemporary, Yi Hwang . Yi I is often referred to by his pen name Yulgok...

. The third Aegis class destroyer Seoae Ryu Sung Ryong was launched on March 24 2011.
The government of Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...

is currently operating four F100 Álvaro de Bazán class
Álvaro de Bazán class frigate
The Álvaro de Bazán class are a new class of Aegis combat system-equipped air defense frigates entering service with the Spanish Navy...

Aegis frigate
Frigate
A frigate is any of several types of warship, the term having been used for ships of various sizes and roles over the last few centuries.In the 17th century, the term was used for any warship built for speed and maneuverability, the description often used being "frigate-built"...

s, with a fifth ship under construction.

External links

Center For Surface Combat Systems (CSCS) US Navy Combat Systems Training, Dahlgren, VA.
AEGIS Training and Readiness Center (ATRC) US Navy AEGIS Training, Dahlgren, VA.
AEGIS Weapon System MK-7 in the FAS Military Analysis Network.
DDG-51 ARLEIGH BURKE-class in the FAS Military Analysis Network....

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.

Overview

Development

Aegis Open Architecture

Technical development and issues

Iran Air Flight 655

Aegis in other navies

See also

External links