The US Navy has provided upgrades to three Ticonderoga-class guided missile cruisers to extend their service life for 10 years from 2026 to 2029.
Revealed by US Navy Secretary Carlos Del Toro, the modernization will sustain the American surface fleet’s capability as the force and industry partners build more advanced platforms.
Selected vessels under this initiative are the USS Gettysburg (CG 64), USS Chosin (CG 65), and the USS Cape St. George (CG 71), which were all built in the 1980s.
Upgrades covered the cruisers’ external components, mechanical and engineering solutions, as well as combat systems.
Modernization of the first two ships was finalized in 2023 and 2024. Work for the final system is scheduled for completion before year end.
“As a former cruiser Sailor, I know the incredible value these highly-capable warships bring to the Fleet and I am proud of their many decades of service,” Del Toro remarked.
“After learning hard lessons from the cruiser modernization program, we are only extending ships that have completed modernization and have the material readiness needed to continue advancing our Navy’s mission.”
Testing Rearm Capability at Sea
After its upgrades, the USS Chosin was sent for a demonstration last October to validate the navy’s “Transferrable Reload At-Sea Mechanism,” an approach of transferring missile canisters between a replenishment and a combat vessel while in the open ocean.
The counterpart of the Chosin for this event was the Military Sealift Command’s USNS Washington Chambers (T-AKE 11) dry cargo ship, which used a hydraulically-powered device to load the cruiser’s vertical launching system.
The exercise concluded with the “transformational logistics” sequence, proving its effectiveness in rearming a warship without relying on ports.
Arleigh Burke Upgrades
The Ticonderoga life extension effort follows a similar strategy launched earlier this month to revamp 12 first-generation Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyers commissioned during the 1990s.
The vessels will continue to operate starting 2028 to 2035 once they receive the necessary upgrades, the US Navy noted.