Living here in Maine we hear from time to time about the goings on at Bath Iron Works, where a lot of the Arleigh Burke class destroyers are built. The Shipwrights at BIW take great pride in crafting what may well be (and we believe are) the greatest warships afloat in the world.
A few select individuals get to ride one of these vessels during one of their “shakedown cruises” where they are tested for seaworthiness prior to delivery to the Navy.
I’ve heard from several of them who describe it as an incredible experience.
Crew and observers have to be strapped in due to the phenominal G-forces encountered during extreme manuvering, and they are exhausted from just hanging on for dear life when they get back to port.
They won’t tell you how fast these things will go, but I seem to recall hearing a rumor several years ago that they could easily tow 200 water skiers behind them, and that at around 40 knots they come up “on the step”, which means that the front half of the hull rises completely out of the water and the ship hydroplanes on the rear portion of the hull.
How much more she’s got left after that point even the gossipers won’t say or don’t know.
High powered “Cigarette” and water skiing boats routinely do that, but I’ve never seen a destroyer doing it... have you?
I suspect that it’s like an F-16 going supersonic over habitated areas; the only time you’re going to hear sonic booms or see a destroyer flying along up on the step these days is if some serious “S” is hitting the proverbial fan someplace.
All this is just rumor, mind you.
But don’t be surprised if you find these things turning up on scene over long distances a lot sooner than you might expect.
Bath build damn fine ships, Mateys.