The term 'aegis' originally meant the shield of Zeus, supreme deity of the ancient Greeks, and that of his daughter Athena, the goddess of wisdom, and has come to mean protection or sponsorship. Some years back the term was applied to a new naval platform which mounted some of the most sophisticated weapons and tracking systems yet devised.

The Aegis system was designed as a total weapon system, from detection to kill. The heart of the system is an advanced, automatic detect and track, multi-function phased-array radar, the AN/SPY-1. This high powered (four megawatt) radar is able to perform search, track and missile guidance functions simultaneously with a track capacity of over 100 targets. The first Engineering Development Model (EDM-1) was installed in the test ship, USS Norton Sound (AVM 1) in 1973.

Technological advances have improved the capability of modern destroyers culminating in the Arleigh Burke (DDG 51) class. Named for the Navy's most famous destroyer squadron combat commander and three-time Chief of Naval Operations, the Arleigh Burke was commissioned on the 4th of July, 1991 and was the most powerful surface combatant ever put to sea. Like the larger Ticonderoga class cruisers, DDG-51's combat systems center around the AEGIS combat system and the SPY-lD, multi-function phased array radar. The combination of AEGIS, the Vertical Launching System, an advanced anti-submarine warfare system, advanced anti-aircraft missiles and Tomahawk ASM/LAM, the Burke class continues a revolution at sea.

DDG 51s were constructed in flights, allowing technological advances during construction. Flight II, introduced in FY 1992, incorporates improvements to the SPY radar and the Standard missile, active electronic countermeasures and communications. Flight IIA, introduced in fiscal year 1994, added a helicopter hangar with one anti-submarine helicopter and one armed attack helicopter. The Aegis program has also projected reducing the cost of each Flight IIA ship by at least $30 million.