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United States Huntington Ingalls Industries
Arleigh Burke-class Destroyer
The most numerous surface combatant class in the U.S. Navy, an Aegis-equipped guided-missile destroyer built by both Huntington Ingalls and General Dynamics Bath Iron Works. Over 70 ships are in service across three flight variants.
In service since 1991 · 1 operator countries
Compiled from public sources ·primary reference ↗ ·last verified 2026-07-02
9,200
t
30
kn
8,100
nmi
96
VLS
329
crew
💲 ≈ $1,900,000,000, Approximate Flight III unit cost
Procurement snapshot
Availability & export
US ITAR-controlled
Export needs U.S. State Dept (DDTC) approval; end-use & re-transfer restrictions apply.
Channel: Foreign Military Sales (FMS) or Direct Commercial Sale
Fielded & proven
Limited · 1 operator
In service since 1991. Status: active · ~74 built.
Lifecycle cost (est.)
$4.8B – $6.7B
Acquisition is only ~30% of lifecycle cost, operating & support dominate over ~35 yrs. Rough 2.5–3.5× the unit price. How we estimate this →
Interoperability
Derived guidance from public data, export regime by country of origin, lifecycle from the GAO ~30% acquisition rule. Verify eligibility, pricing and offsets with the manufacturer and your acquisition authority.
Compatible munitions & weapons
Publicly reported weapons the Arleigh Burke-class Destroyer can carry. Linked items have a full spec page.
Full specifications
Firepower
Armament, payload and guidance.
| Main armament Primary weapon: main gun, cannon or missile type. | 5-inch Mk 45 naval gun |
|---|---|
| VLS cells Vertical-launch missile cells on a warship, a proxy for magazine depth. Higher means more missiles before rearming. | 96 |
Physical
Dimensions, weight and crew.
| Length Overall length including gun/probe where applicable. | 155.3 m |
|---|
Sensors & avionics
Radar, sensor suite and datalinks.
| Radar Primary radar. AESA (active electronically scanned array) is the current state of the art. | AN/SPY-1D Aegis phased array radar |
|---|---|
| Sensors IRST, EO/IR turrets, laser designators, sniper pods, thermal sights. | Aegis Combat System |
Program
Cost, production scale and operators.
| Unit cost Approximate flyaway/unit cost where public. Defense pricing varies hugely by contract, offsets and configuration. Lower is cheaper. | $1,900,000,000 |
|---|---|
| Units built Total production run. Higher means proven manufacturing, mature logistics and spares availability. | 74 |
| Operator countries Number of countries operating the system. More operators means broader support ecosystem. | 1 |
Specifications compiled from public Huntington Ingalls Industries and reference sources ↗. Published defense figures are approximations, treat comparisons as directional. Last verified 2026-07-02.
Compare with rivals
See how it stacks up
Naval Group Amiral Ronarc'h-class Frigate (FDI) 
Navantia Alvaro de Bazan class (F100) Head-to-head comparisons
Arleigh Burke-class Destroyer vs
Type 055 
Type 45 Daring 
Sachsen-class 
Kirov-class 
Sejong the Great-class destroyer 
Formidable-class Frequently asked questions
What is the main armament of the Huntington Ingalls Industries Arleigh Burke-class Destroyer? +
The Huntington Ingalls Industries Arleigh Burke-class Destroyer's primary weapon is the 5-inch Mk 45 naval gun.
What is the Huntington Ingalls Industries Arleigh Burke-class Destroyer used for? +
The Huntington Ingalls Industries Arleigh Burke-class Destroyer is a warship typically used for air defense.
How many countries operate the Huntington Ingalls Industries Arleigh Burke-class Destroyer? +
The Huntington Ingalls Industries Arleigh Burke-class Destroyer is operated by 1 countries.
How much does the Huntington Ingalls Industries Arleigh Burke-class Destroyer cost? +
The Huntington Ingalls Industries Arleigh Burke-class Destroyer has an approximate unit cost of 1,900,000,000 USD. Defense pricing varies by contract, offsets and configuration, treat this as directional.
Similar systems
Related coverage
Arleigh Burke-class Destroyer in the news
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South Korea's Sejong the Great carries 128 VLS cells, more than China's Type 055 or the US Navy's Arleigh Burke, but the number hides three tradeoffs.
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Which Warship Packs the Most Missiles Per Ton?
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