Story highlights "If Batman had a ship, it would be the USS Zumwalt," a Navy admiral says

The USS Zumwalt is the first of a small class of three destroyers

(CNN) The US Navy officially welcomed its largest and most technologically advanced destroyer to the fleet Saturday as the USS Zumwalt was commissioned in Baltimore.

The Zumwalt is striking in appearance, with sharp angles and weaponry concealed behind flat surfaces, a design that makes it many times more difficult to spot on radar than conventional destroyers.

"If Batman had a ship, it would be the USS Zumwalt," said Adm. Harry B. Harris, Jr., commander of the US Pacific Command, where the ship will be assigned.

The ship also has an advanced power plant and weapon systems that can move the Navy into the future, said Secretary of the Navy Ray Mabus.

Photos: USS Zumwalt begins sea trials The USS Zumwalt, the Navy's biggest and most expensive destroyer ever built, heads out into the Atlantic Ocean on Monday, December 7. The ship is out at sea for the first time to undergo sea trials. Hide Caption 1 of 7 Photos: USS Zumwalt begins sea trials The USS Zumwalt leaves the Kennebec River in Phippsburg, Maine, on December 7. The ship and its class are named in honor of Adm. Elmo R. "Bud" Zumwalt Jr., who served as chief of naval operations from 1970 to 1974. Hide Caption 2 of 7 Photos: USS Zumwalt begins sea trials Deputy Defense Secretary Bob Work speaks with the Zumwalt crew during a visit to Bath Iron Works in Bath, Maine, on May 12. Work toured the ship and observed its progress. One thing that sets the $3 billion ship apart is its very small crew. Compared with about 300 sailors needed for similar warships, the Zumwalt's minimum compliment is only 130. The smaller crew is made possible by advanced automated systems which "make it much easier and much more effective for the sailor to operate," says former Navy Capt. Wade Knudson, who now serves as Zumwalt program director for Pentagon contractor, Raytheon. Hide Caption 3 of 7 Photos: USS Zumwalt begins sea trials Mouzetta Zumwalt-Weathers christens the Zumwalt during a ceremony at Bath Iron Works on April 12, 2014. Hide Caption 4 of 7 Photos: USS Zumwalt begins sea trials The ship is floated out of dry dock at the Bath Iron Works shipyard on October 28, 2013. Hide Caption 5 of 7 Photos: USS Zumwalt begins sea trials The 1,000-ton deckhouse is craned toward the deck of the ship to be integrated with the its hull at Bath Iron Works on December 14, 2012. Hide Caption 6 of 7 Photos: USS Zumwalt begins sea trials Retired Marine Corps Lt. Col. James G. Zumwalt, left, assists welder Carl Pepin as he inscribes a steel plate at a keel laying ceremony at Bath Iron Works on Thursday, November 17, 2011. Hide Caption 7 of 7

"It doesn't look like other ships and it does things other ships cannot do," Mabus said.

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