BATH — The Navy is working fast trying to figure out what will replace the Bath-built Arleigh Burke-class destroyer, a process that will be watched closely by the nation’s shipyards.

In a recent interview with the Surface Navy Association’s newsletter, Director of Surface Warfare Rear Adm. Ronald A. Boxall opened up about what the Navy expects from this next generation of ships.

Boxall said the successor to the Arleigh Burke-class destroyer would be coming quickly, with contracts likely being signed in the next five to six years.

“(W)e have a very clear goal to get a large surface combatant on contract in the ’23 to ’24 timeframe,” said Boxall.

One of the key goals with the new ships will be a hull that can be upgraded in an affordable, timely manner. The Arleigh Burke-class destroyers have been upgraded and modernized regularly since they were restarted, but that hasn’t always been an easy process. The latest version of the Arleigh Burke-class destroyers, the Flight III, will feature a much larger radar that requires significantly more power and more space for cooling. That radar, as well as some other changes, have basically maxed out that ship’s capacity.

“We’re at the limit of what we can put on the DDG 51 (Arleigh Burke-class) hull. So we want to take the capability that we like in the DDG Flight III, and move it over to a new and larger hull so it’s got room and opportunity for growth,” explained Boxall.

Boxall said he expects the Navy to order 10 to 12 Arleigh Burke-class destroyers in the Flight III design before moving on to the next generation destroyer.

The Zumwalt-class destroyer was supposed to be that next generation. Deterred by the price tag of the highly advanced ship, the Navy canceled it’s run of Zumwalt-class destroyers after just three ships.

In recent remarks, BIW President Dirk Lesko explained how that decision had a major impact on this shipyard. BIW made major changes to the shipyard in preparation for the Navy’s initial expectation of 32 Zumwalt-class destroyers.

“In the years that led up to that contract, we worked to change the shipyard from DDG 51 construction to DDG 1000 (Zumwalt-class) construction. We changed the tools, our design practices, the way we planned the ship and the production work labor,” Lesko said.

When that order was reduced to just three, the shipyard had to basically relearn how to build the Arleigh Burke-class destroyers with their new tools.

Boxall said that the both the Arleigh Burke-class destroyers and the Zumwalt-class destroyers would inform the design of the next large surface combatant. Advanced technologies, such as the powerful new radar that will be installed on the Flight III Arleigh Burke-class destroyers and the completely integrated power system utilized by the Zumwalt-class destroyers could be used in the next generation ship.

“As we move forward with the large surface combatant, one of the things we’re looking very closely is what things from DDG 1000 that we would like to keep into the next generation large surface combatant,” said Boxall. “(W)e’re going to take the best of what we have in DDG Flight III and DDG 1000, as well. And it would be a shame for us not to learn from those investments that we’ve made in those very capable platforms.”

nstrout@timesrecord.com