Destroyers' role in focus as world monitors N. Korea

NORFOLK

Just 18 Navy ships have the ability to destroy a ballistic missile hurtling through the air at thousands of miles per hour.

At least one of them is waiting in the Pacific Ocean to monitor the possible launch of a North Korean rocket later this week - a threat that has raised tensions throughout the region.

Another, the destroyer Ramage, is due home in Norfolk today from its first deployment with this new mission, which the Navy says is now a key part of its global strategy.

The ship's commanding officer, Cmdr. Peter Galluch, said that as he watches what's going on in the Pacific, "what's going through my mind right now is I'm glad we're heading home!"

"But on a serious note, it's a very complex operation, and I know the COs involved there are doing a lot of work and a lot of training to make sure that they're able to conduct whatever mission they are given," he said. "I also understand, after deploying for seven months with the system, how good the system is."

Ramage's ballistic missile defense system is designed to track and destroy missiles that can travel more than 600 miles, threatening civilian and military targets.

North Korea says its planned launch is intended to put a civilian satellite into space. But U.S. officials say the country's real goal is to test technology that could someday be used to carry a warhead to the United States.

In addition, Iran has an extensive supply of the missiles, and some believe they could be used to deliver chemical, biological or nuclear weapons, according to congressional researchers.

Ramage is the first of two Norfolk-based ships to be equipped with ballistic missile defense technology. The crew spent the deployment in the Mediterranean Sea and Persian Gulf training to use the system while also carrying out more traditional missions, such as protecting an Iraqi oil terminal and searching for pirates and terrorists, Galluch said.

The system is based on the Aegis combat technology the Navy has used for more than three decades. So the basics - spotting a target with radar, deciding whether it's hostile, and shooting it down - remain the same, Galluch said.

What makes it more complex, he said, is that his crew has to work much more closely with the Army and Air Force - and that because the target is moving at such high speed, "we really have to pick up the timing."

About two dozen of the ship's 260 sailors work directly on the system, he said. More than 100 others are involved in keeping it working - including engineers who supply water to cool the equipment, the supply department that stocks parts and the technicians who repair the circuitry.

Galluch said he's thankful his ship made it through the deployment without having to do anything more than practice.

"My hope is that the fact that we have this capability out there, that we deter people from actually wanting to use the missiles," he said. "And so hopefully every deployment we'll be able to say the same thing."

 This report contains information from The Associated Press.

Meredith Kruse, (757) 446-2164, meredith.kruse@pilotonline.com