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Mk.45 MOD 4 Naval Gun

BAE acquisition United Defense, LP’s Armament Systems Division in Minneapolis, MN is being awarded a $44.2 million contract modification to previously awarded contract for three MK 45 MOD 4 Gun Mounts.

The new 5-inch (127mm), 62-caliber Mk45 Mod 4 gun replaces the older Mk45 Mod 2 version that has been the only naval gunfire support system in service since the retirement of the U.S. Navy’s battleships more than a decade ago. The Mk 45 Mod 4 will improve naval fire support range from 13 nautical miles to over 21 nautical miles using the Navy’s new 5-inch Cargo projectile, the Improved Conventional Munition, and an improved propelling charge for all-weather and day/night mission support. The new Mk 45 Mod 4 will also provide over-the-horizon range of more than 60 nautical miles with the near-term integration of the 5-inch Extended Range Guided Munition (ERGM) and propelling charge.

Subsystem upgrades for the Mk 45 Mod 4 include a 62-caliber barrel, strengthened gun chamber and trunnion supports, lengthened recoil stroke and an interactive touch-screen control system. Design improvements also include a new gun mount shield to improve maintainability and reduce overall radar signature. United Defense is poised to incorporate round initialization interface and identification capabilities in unison with fleet integration of the 5-inch ERGM to allow Mk 45 Mod 4 to effectively support this new land attack munition.

The Mk45 Mod 4 naval gun is a component of the Mk34 Mod 1 Gun Weapon System – a fully integrated subsystem of the AEGIS Combat System that interfaces with the Naval Fires Control System. The other two major components of the system are the Mk160 Gun Computer System and the Mk46 Optical Sight.

Installation of the Mod 4 gun began on the destroyer DDG-81 USS Winston S. Churchill and will eventually equip all subsequent DDG-51 Arleigh Burke-class AEGIS destroyers. Selected CG-47 Ticonderoga-class AEGIS missile cruisers also will receive the new gun under the Cruiser Conversion Program. Denmark’s Flexible Support Ship and Korean KDX-II destroyers are also customers.

Work will be performed in Minneapolis, MN (60%) and Louisville, KY (40%) and is expected to be complete by December 2007. The Naval Sea Systems Command, Wash., D.C. issued the contract (N00024-99-C-5206).

Additional Readings & Sources

• United Defense – Naval Gun Mk 45 MOD 4

• Sea Power (Sept 27, 2003) – Armed With ERGM, Navy Gun Fire is Fast and Deadly