WASHINGTON — The Navy’s officials in charge of shipbuilding noted a silver lining in the cloud of the service’s upcoming trough in the force level of submarines in the fleet: a chance to keep pace on the maintenance backlog while the dry dock infrastructure is built up to handle the following increase in submarines. 

Because of decisions made decades ago in the post-Cold War drawdown, the Navy is facing a decline in its submarine force in the mid-2020s as the Los Angeles-class attack submarines (SSNs) are retired. Until recently, the building of the Virginia-class SSNs, at one per year, has been too slow to replace the retiring Los Angeles class. The result is a deficit in the force level in the mid-2020s that risks being as low as 41 boats. 

However, the Navy is looking at extending the life of several Los Angeles-class SSNs to help alleviate the shortage. Also, production of the Virginia class has increased from one boat per year to two, which by the mid-2020s will starting to help raise the force level. 

On Dec. 4, the Navy awarded a five-year multiyear contract to submarine builders General Dynamics Electric Boat and Huntington Ingalls Newport News Shipbuilding to build nine Block V Virginia-class SSNs, two per year, with an option for a 10th. The two-per-year rate will enable the Navy gradually to increase its submarine force structure. 

The Navy is instituting its Shipyard Infrastructure Optimization Plan to improve the capacity and capabilities of its shipyards, including the upgrade of its dry docks.      

“We’re going to take advantage as there’s going to be a little downturn as the submarine numbers go down,” said James F. Geurts, assistant secretary of the Navy for research, development and acquisition, testifying Dec. 4 on Capitol Hill before a joint hearing of the Senate Armed Services Committee’s subcommittees on seapower and readiness and management. “That will give us the spot to recapitalize so that as the numbers grow back up we will have all the capacity we need.” 

“We’re going to build the dry docks along with the maintenance plan along with the growth in the fleet to make sure that we get the maintenance done on time, to get the dry docks done on time to support the maintenance we’re going to need down the road,” Vice Adm. Thomas J. Moore, commander of Naval Sea Systems Command, said in testimony before the subcommittees.   

The Navy in recent years has departed from its usual practice of having nuclear submarine maintenance performed only in the Navy-owned shipyards to keep up with the maintenance backlog. 

“We have sent some submarines to our nuclear submarine shipbuilders to do maintenance availabilities,” Geurts said. “Quite frankly, the performance there hasn’t been exactly stellar, either. A lot of that is the same issues we have in the public [Navy-owned] yards. You get a trained workforce doing maintenance that’s different from doing construction. It’s taken us awhile to get the training and proficiency up there.  

“I foresee on the submarine side always wanting the capacity to do some of that work in the private construction yards because that give us some surge capacity …  and opportunities where we need to balance out workload.” 

ARLINGTON, Va. — The Navy awarded it largest shipbuilding contract ever with an order for nine Block V Virginia-class nuclear-powered attack submarines (SSNs), with an option for a 10th SSN, Navy officials said in a Dec. 2 media roundtable in the Pentagon. The $22.2 billion contract to General Dynamics Electric Boat (EB), teamed with Huntington Ingalls Industries’ Newport News Shipbuilding (NNS) as a major subcontractor to EB, will mean that the shipbuilders will soon be building three submarines per year — including one Columbia-class ballistic-missile submarine — and will add thousands of new jobs to meet the demand.  

The nine Block V boats will be funded over five years through the 2019–2023 budgets, beginning with SSN 802, the only boat in the block that will be built without a Virginia Payload Module (VPM), a hull extension that adds four payload tubes for up to 28 more Tomahawk cruise missiles (for a total of 40, including the bow tubes) or other future payloads, including special operations forces equipment. The VPM-equipped Block V boats will enable the Navy eventually to retire the four Ohio-class guided-missile submarines. 

The contract allows approximately $455 million for the long-lead purchase of material and equipment for the option of a 10th Block V boat, enabling the Navy to order the material at economic order quantities and preserve the supplier industrial base. If the option is exercised, the 10^th boat would cost an additional $1.9 billion, raising the contract value to a total of $241 billion. 

Government-furnished equipment, such as nuclear reactors and propulsion machinery, will add $13 billion to the program, said James F. Geurts, assistant secretary of the Navy for Research, Development and Acquisition, speaking to reporters at the roundtable. 

Geurts said the multi-year aspect of the contract will garner savings of a minimum of 7% ($1.8 billion) and potentially 17% ($4.4 billion) is the planned delivery schedule is sustained. 

“Block V Virginias and Virginia Payload Module are a generational leap in submarine capability for the Navy. These design changes will enable the fleet to maintain our nation’s undersea dominance.”

Rear Adm. David Goggins, the Navy’s program executive officer for Submarines

The first Block V boats, SSN 802, are scheduled for a 70-month construction period. The second and third boats — SSNs 803 and 804, the first subs with the VPM — are under a 74-month construction schedule. Subsequent boats are planned for 72-month construction timelines. Delivery of SSN 802 is scheduled for 2025, with the subsequent boats following through 2029. 

Rear Adm. David Goggins, the Navy’s program executive officer for Submarines, also speaking at the roundtable, said the Navy has delivered 18 Virginia-class SSNs, with all 10 Block IV boats under construction, and that the program has shortened the total span of the construction program by 3.5 years. He said the last Block IV boat, SSN 801, will be completed in 60 months. 

“Over the life of the Virginia program, shipbuilders have driven delivery timelines from 88 months in Block I to a current average rate of 68 months, while doubling the build rate of submarines to two ships per year and consistently increasing ship capability,” EB said in a Dec. 2 release.   

Goggins praised the increasing quality of production of the Virginia SSNs, noting that the newest, the future USS Delaware, scored a 0.96 on its review by the Bureau of Inspection and Survey. 

EB and NNS have a teaming arrangement whereby each builder produces certain sections of the submarines and alternate as final assembly and delivery yards for the Virginia class. Because EB will be the delivery builder for the upcoming Columbia class, NNS will be the delivery yard for six of the nine or 10 Block V SSNs, and EB will deliver three, plus one more, the 10th, if the option is exercised.  

Kevin Graney, president of Electric Boat, also speaking at the roundtable, said that EB has invested $1.7 billion in new facilities in Connecticut and Rhode Island, including a 750,000-square-foot construction hall for the Virginia Payload Modules. He said EB has hired 15,000 new workers and expects to hire 13,000 more by 2027 for the two submarine programs. 

Jennifer Boykin, president of Newport News Shipbuilding, said that the parent company, Huntington Ingalls, has hired 10,000 workers and expects to hire 1,500 more. Huntington Ingalls has invested more than $1 billion in new facilities, more than half to the NNS yards.    

Geurts praised the multi-year contract as one that will ensure stability for the shipyard and their work force, noting that the contract “was built for stability,” a factor that will enable shipyard workers “to know their future” and for shipyards to “retain high-caliber talent.” 

He also noted that “the greatest risk to Columbia was an unstable Virginia program.” 

“Block V Virginias and Virginia Payload Module are a generational leap in submarine capability for the Navy,” Goggins said in a Dec. 2 release. “These design changes will enable the fleet to maintain our nation’s undersea dominance.” 

“The Block V contract balances the right mix of undersea quantity and capability with a profile that continues to stabilize the industrial base. This balance and stability will enable the success of submarine acquisitions across the enterprise,” said Virginia-class Program Manager Capt. Christopher Hanson. “Our warfighters, the Navy and the nation will benefit greatly from the new capabilities that the Block V submarines will bring to the fleet.” 

ARLINGTON, Va. — Defense Secretary Mark Esper recommended that retired Rear Adm. Kenneth J. Braithwaite II, who serves as U.S. ambassador to Norway, become the next Navy secretary and successor to Richard V. Spencer, who resigned Nov. 24. President Trump signaled in a tweet he intends to nominate Braithwaite. 

Braithwaite is a former P-3 naval aviator who became a Navy public affairs officer.   

In his final assignment as the Navy’s vice chief of information, Braithwaite served as the principal Navy Reserve liaison and adviser to the chief of information, having responsibility for formulating strategic communications counsel to Department of the Navy leadership, according to his official biography. He also served as the head of the Navy Reserve public affairs program and as an adjunct adviser to commander, Navy Reserve Force. 

A 1984 graduate of the U.S. Naval Academy, Braithwaite was designated a naval aviator in April 1986. His first operational assignment was to Patrol Squadron 17, NAS Barbers Point, Hawaii. He flew anti-submarine missions, tracking adversary submarines throughout the western Pacific and Indian oceans, according to his official biography. 

In April 1988, he was redesignated as a public affairs officer with a first tour aboard the aircraft carrier USS America. He had additional duty as the PAO to commander, Carrier Group 2, and the commander of Striking Force 6th Fleet. He made both a NATO force deployment to the North Atlantic operating above the Arctic Circle and a Mediterranean/Indian Ocean cruise, where the battle group responded to tensions in the Persian Gulf. In 1990, he was assigned to the staff of commander, Naval Base Philadelphia, as chief of public affairs. 

Braithwaite left active duty in 1993 and resumed service in the Navy Reserve, where he served with numerous commands from Boston to Norfolk, Virginia. Also during this time, he earned a master’s degree in government administration with honors from the University of Pennsylvania. 

In October 2001, Braithwaite assumed command of NR Fleet Combat Camera Atlantic at Naval Air Station Willow Grove, Pennsylvania, according to his bio. During this tour the command was tasked with providing support to the Joint Task Force Commander, Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. In March 2003, he deployed for Operation Iraqi Freedom with a portion of his command in support of naval operations to capture the port of Umm Qasr. Following this tour, he was commanding officer of Navy Office of Information New York 102.  

Braithwaite served as commander, Joint Public Affairs Support Element-Reserve, from October 2004 to October 2007. In this role, he commanded a 50-person joint public affairs expeditionary unit that was forward deployed to support joint combatant commanders in time of conflict. 

While in command and following the devastating earthquake in Pakistan in 2005, Braithwaite was deployed there as part of a joint task force for disaster assistance, serving as strategic communications director and working for the JTF commander and the U.S. ambassador in Islamabad, according to his official biography.

ARLINGTON, Va. — Defense Secretary Mark T. Esper is set to meet Nov. 25 with top U.S. Navy officials to discuss the way ahead in the wake of Secretary Richard V. Spencer’s sudden departure, a Pentagon spokesman said in a statement. Esper has proposed a retired Navy admiral to replace Spencer. 

Esper is meeting with Navy Undersecretary Thomas Modly, who is the acting civilian chief of the sea service, and Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Michael M. Gilday, Pentagon spokesman Jonathan Hoffman said in the release.  

Esper “has asked for the resignation of [Spencer] after losing trust and confidence in him regarding his lack of candor over conversations with the White House involving the handling of Navy SEAL Eddie Gallagher,” Hoffman said.  

Chief Special Warfare Operator Edward Gallagher was tried by court martial for 10 crimes, including murder, allegedly committed during operations in Iraq, but was acquitted of the charges in July except for one count of posing for an unofficial picture with a human casualty, for which he was reduced in rank to petty officer first class.  

In a Nov. 24 tweet, President Trump said he “was not pleased with the way that Navy Seal Eddie Gallagher’s trial was handled by the Navy. He was treated very badly but, despite this, was completely exonerated on all major charges. I then restored Eddie’s rank.” 

“After Secretary Esper and Chairman [of the Joint Chiefs Gen. Mark A. Milley] spoke with the commander in chief on [Nov. 22] regarding the case of Gallagher, Secretary Esper learned that Secretary Spencer had previously and privately proposed to the White House — contrary to Spencer’s public position — to restore Gallagher’s rank and allow him to retire with his Trident pin,” the Defense Department release said. 

“When recently asked by Secretary Esper, Secretary Spencer confirmed that despite multiple conversations on the Gallagher matter, Secretary Esper was never informed by Secretary Spencer of his private proposal,” the release said. 

“Secretary Esper’s position with regard to [Uniform Code of Military Justice], disciplinary and fitness-for-duty actions has always been that the process should be allowed to play itself out objectively and deliberately, in fairness to all parties. However, at this point, given the events of the last few days, Secretary Esper has directed that Gallagher retain his Trident pin.” 

“I am deeply troubled by this conduct shown by a senior DOD official,” Esper said. “Unfortunately, as a result, I have determined that Secretary Spencer no longer has my confidence to continue in his position. I wish Richard well.” 

Spencer, who assumed office in July 2017, is a former Marine Corps helicopter pilot and business leader who worked to change the culture of the Navy and its business practices and warfighting readiness. He became frustrated with ongoing delays with the aircraft carrier USS Gerald R. Ford and its progress toward fleet service. Spencer openly criticized the Navy, congressionally imposed cost caps and the builder of the carrier, Huntington Ingalls, for the problems with the ship’s advanced weapons elevators. 

Trump said in the Nov. 24 tweet that he was disappointed with Spencer’s failure to address cost overruns from the contracting procedures of previous administrations.  

In his Nov. 24 resignation letter, Spencer said, “The rule of law is what sets us apart from our adversaries. Good order and discipline is what has enabled our victory against foreign tyranny time and again, from Capt. Lawrence’s famous order, “Don’t Give up the Ship,” to the discipline and determination that propelled our flag to the highest point on lwo Jima. The Constitution and the Uniform Code of Military Justice are the shields that set us apart and the beacons that protect us all. Through my Title 10 authority, I have strived to ensure our proceedings are fair, transparent and consistent, from the newest recruit to the flag and general officer level. 

“Unfortunately, it has become apparent that in this respect I no longer share the same understanding with the commander in chief who appointed me. In regards to the key principle of good order and discipline, I cannot in good conscience obey an order that I believe violates the sacred oath I took in the presence of my family, my flag and my faith to support and defend the Constitution of the United States.” 

In his resignation letter, Spencer continued: “The president deserves and should expect a secretary of the Navy who is aligned with his vision for the future of our force generation and sustainment. Therefore, with pride in the achievements we’ve shared and everlasting faith in the continued service and fidelity of the finest Sailors, Marines and civilian teammates on earth, I hereby acknowledge my termination as United States secretary of the Navy, to be effective immediately.” 

Esper proposed to Trump that Ambassador Kenneth J. Braithwaite II, current ambassador to Norway and a retired Navy Reserve rear admiral, be considered as the next Navy secretary. Braithwaite is a former naval aviator who flew P-3 maritime patrol aircraft and who later became a Navy public affairs officer. 

NORFOLK, Va. — The amphibious assault ship USS Wasp arrived at Naval Station Norfolk on Nov. 18, completing its homeport shift after spending nearly two years forward deployed to Sasebo, Japan, and operating in the U.S. 7th Fleet area of operations. 

The ship departed Sasebo on Aug. 26 and began its transit to Norfolk. It will be replaced in Sasebo by the amphibious assault ship USS America later this year. 

“I’m honored to be on the pier for USS Wasp’s return to Naval Station Norfolk, and to fold this awesome warship and its crew back into ESG-2, our Navy’s forward-leaning blue/green warfighting team,” said Rear Adm. John Mustin, commander, Expeditionary Strike Group 2. 

“This ship and her amazing crew spent nearly two years performing groundbreaking work in U.S. 7th Fleet, honing their skills as professional mariners, reinforcing naval integration and building maritime capabilities with our Indo-Pacific partners. I look forward to meeting with the crew and learning from their time abroad, particularly their lessons learned from deploying with the F-35B Lightning II — a critical high-end capability that I’m eager to incorporate into our east coast amphibious task forces. On behalf of Navy-Marine Corps warfighters at all echelons, I’m thrilled to welcome them back to the Virginia waterfront.” 

Wasp arrived in the 7th Fleet in January 2018 to replace the USS Bonhomme Richard and had been operating with Marines from the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit (MEU). While working together, the Blue-Green team worked to expand on the relationships that U.S. forces maintain with regional allies and partners. 

“I could not be prouder to call myself a ‘Stinger’ as we make our return to Norfolk after two years forward deployed to Japan,” said Capt. Greg Baker, Wasp’s commanding officer. 

“This crew has shown their mettle consistently through humanitarian assistance operations, large-scale multinational exercises and real-world operations with strategic implications in the 7th Fleet. The crew has taken Wasp through four different fleets, and their resiliency has been demonstrated, as many have not been with their families for more than two years while doing some of the hardest operations the Navy does. We are all happy to be home for some well-earned rest and to enable the ship to get into a maintenance period.” 

While based in Japan, Wasp participated in exercises Balikatan with the Philippine military and exercise Talisman Sabre with the Australian Defence Force as well as additional forces from Canada, Japan, New Zealand and United Kingdom. The ship also assisted the Federal Emergency Management Agency and local civilian authorities with relief operations in the Northern Mariana Islands following typhoon Manghut in 2018. 

Wasp arrived in the U.S. 4th Fleet area of operations Oct. 1. The ship enjoyed the sights during a visited Valparaiso, Chile, and embarked 20 multinational naval officers assigned to a maritime Combined Task Force (CTF) that was based aboard the Wasp. The Naval War College hosted a classroom education course for the CTF that focused on humanitarian and disaster relief planning. 

The ship then conducted a 26-hour transit of the Strait of Magellan, bringing the ship from the Pacific Ocean to the Atlantic, and visited Rio De Janeiro, Brazil, where the crew explored the city and participated in community relations events.

SAN DIEGO — The U.S. Navy accepted delivery of its third expeditionary sea base (ESB) ship, USNS Miguel Keith (T-ESB 5), on Nov. 15, Program Executive Office-Ships said in a release. 

Delivery marks the official transfer of the ship from the shipbuilder to the Navy. The USNS Miguel Keith will be owned and operated by Military Sealift Command. 

“The Navy and industry team overcame significant setbacks in the construction of this ship, and I’m extremely proud of the urgency and determination displayed on everyone’s part to deliver a high-quality ship that will support our operational requirements in the 7th Fleet area of operations,” said Capt. Scot Searles, Strategic Sealift and Theater Sealift program manager, Program Executive Office Ships. “Like the ship’s namesake, those who sail aboard Miguel Keith will embody his dedication to service to our country.” 

ESBs are flexible, modular platforms that are optimized to support a variety of maritime-based missions such as special operations force and airborne mine countermeasures support operations in addition to humanitarian support and sustainment of traditional military missions. 

ESBs include a four-spot flight deck and hangar and a versatile mission deck and are designed around four core capabilities: aviation facilities, berthing, equipment staging support and command and control assets. ESBs will operate as the component commander requires, providing the fleet with critical access to infrastructure that supports the flexible deployment of forces and supplies. 

USNS Miguel Keith was built by General Dynamics NASSCO shipyard in San Diego. NASSCO is under contract for detail design and construction of ESBs 6 and 7 with an option for ESB 8.

WASHINGTON — Navy Secretary Richard V. Spencer announced a future Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer will be named in honor of late Sen. Thad Cochran, a Navy veteran, the secretary’s public affairs said in a release. 

Cochran was commissioned an ensign in the U.S. Naval Reserve in 1959 after graduating from the University of Mississippi with a bachelor’s degree in psychology and completed his service in the U.S. Navy in 1961. 

He served on the staff of the Commandant of the 8th Naval District in New Orleans; taught military law and naval orientation at the Officer Candidate School in Newport, Rhode Island; and was promoted to the rank of lieutenant in the U.S. Naval Reserve. 

Cochran went on to serve in the House of Representatives from 1973 to 1978 and represented Mississippi in the U.S. Senate from 1978 to 2018. He was recognized as the 10th longest-serving senator in the U.S. history. He was chairman of the powerful Senate Appropriations Committee from 2005 to 2007 and from 2015 to 2018. 

“From his service as a legal officer aboard the heavy cruiser USS Macon, to his dedicated work on behalf of our Sailors and Marines on the Senate Appropriations Committee, Sen. Thad Cochran was always a strong advocate for our nation’s defense and a courtly voice for cooperation and civility in American politics,” Spencer said. “We mourned his passing this May, but his legacy will live on wherever this Arleigh Burke-class destroyer may serve.”   

Arleigh Burke-class destroyers conduct a variety of operations, from peacetime presence and crisis response to sea control and power projection. The USS Thad Cochran will be capable of fighting air, surface, and subsurface battles simultaneously and will contain a combination of offensive and defensive weapon systems to support maritime warfare, including integrated air and missile defense and vertical launch capabilities. The ship will be 509 feet long, have a beam of 59 feet and be capable of operating in excess of 30 knots.

WASHINGTON — Navy Secretary Richard V. Spencer announced a future Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer will bear the name of the late Sen. Richard G. Lugar, a Navy veteran, Spencer’s public affairs office said in a release. 

Lugar served in the Navy from 1957 to 1960 and represented Indiana in the U.S. Senate for 36 years. He died April 28. 

“Senator Lugar dedicated his life to his country, first through service in the U.S. Navy then through service in Congress,” Spencer said. “I am honored to name a future Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer after him. It is fitting this class of ship should bear Senator Lugar’s name, just as he served under Admiral Burke in life. This ship and her crew will continue his legacy of service, safeguarding the safety and security of America and her allies all over the world.” 

Lugar attended Officer Candidate School in Rhode Island, with follow-on training in Florida, before serving as an intelligence briefer for Adm. Arleigh Burke, who was chief of naval operations at the time. 

As chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Lugar was a co-creator of the Nunn-Lugar Cooperative Threat Reduction Program, which provided funding and expertise to secure and dismantle nuclear, chemical and biological weapons and delivery systems around the world. In recent years, funding provided through the program has focused on export and border control programs and on the detection of radiological weapons. 

In 2013, Lugar was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom. 

The future USS Richard G. Lugar will be capable of fighting air, surface and subsurface battles simultaneously and will contain a combination of offensive and defensive weapon systems to support maritime warfare, including integrated air and missile defense and vertical launch capabilities. The ship will be 509 feet long, have a beam of 59 feet and will be capable of operating in excess of 30 knots. 

SEATTLE — Boeing has delivered the first of nine P-8A Poseidon maritime patrol aircraft to the United Kingdom Royal Air Force, the company said in a release. 

The U.K. is acquiring the multimission aircraft through the foreign military sales process with the U.S. Navy. The P-8A Poseidon replaces the U.K.’s retired Nimrod aircraft. 

Speaking to attendees at the delivery ceremony, Air Marshal Andrew Turner, deputy commander of capability for the Royal Air Force, spoke of the “profound challenge” of enemy submarines threatening the U.K. and other nations. 

“P-8 is the key to solving this challenge on the surface, the sub-surface and in the waters of the North Atlantic. There is no place [for our enemies] to hide. We will make the oceans transparent and we will prevail.” 

Boeing formally delivered the aircraft on Oct. 29 to the U.S. Navy during a ceremony at the Boeing Military Delivery Center in Tukwila, Wash. From Tukwila, the aircraft flew to the Naval Air Station Jacksonville, Florida, where Navy leaders officially are to turn the aircraft over to the U.K. At JAX, Royal Air Force crew will work with the aircraft before flying it to the U.K. in January. All nine P-8A aircraft will be based at Lossiemouth, Scotland. 

As part of a collaborative program with the U.S. Navy, pilots and maintainers from the RAF have been stationed at NAS Jacksonville since 2012. Called “Project Seedcorn,” the arrangement has allowed RAF members to fly the P-8A with Patrol Squadron Thirty (VP-30), the Navy’s maritime patrol and reconnaissance fleet replacement squadron, to maintain their maritime patrol skills in advance of receiving the P-8A. 

The P-8 is a long-range anti-submarine warfare, anti-surface warfare, intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance aircraft capable of broad-area, maritime and littoral operations. In addition, the P-8 performs humanitarian and search and rescue missions around the globe.

PASCAGOULA, Miss. — In a milestone for the DDG 51 program, the keel of the first Flight III destroyer, the future USS Jack H. Lucas (DDG 125), was ceremoniously laid and authenticated at Huntington Ingalls Shipyard on Nov. 7. 

Ruby Lucas and Catherine B. Reynolds, the ship’s sponsors, authenticated the keel by etching their initials into the keel plate. Although the official start of fabrication for the Lucas began in May 2018, authenticating the ship’s keel symbolically recognizes the joining of modular components and represents the ceremonial beginning of the ship.  

“This destroyer was named after an American hero, Medal of Honor recipient Jack Lucas, and I am humbled and honored to be here today as we authenticate the keel on his namesake ship,” said Capt. Seth Miller, DDG 51 class program manager, PEO Ships. “The Flight III ships will bring increased lethality and warfighting capacity to our warfighters, and today’s milestone is the first of many to come as we work to deliver this highly capable ship to the Fleet.”  

DDG 125 will be the first Arleigh Burke-class destroyer built in the Flight III configuration with improved capability and capacity to perform anti-air warfare and ballistic-missile defense in support of the integrated air and missile defense mission. 

The Flight III design contains modifications from the earlier DDG 51 class, enabling the SPY-6 radar, in association with Aegis Baseline 10, which includes larger electronically scanned arrays and the power generation and cooling equipment required to operate the powerful new radar.  

These multimission surface combatants serve as integral assets in global maritime security, engaging in air, undersea, surface, strike and ballistic missile defense as well as providing increased capabilities in anti-submarine warfare, command and control and anti-surface warfare. 

HII’s Pascagoula shipyard also is building the guided missile destroyers Delbert D. Black (DDG 119), Frank E. Petersen Jr. (DDG 121) and Lenah H. Sutcliffe Higbee (DDG 123), amphibious assault ships Tripoli (LHA 7) and Bougainville (LHA 8) and amphibious transport dock ships Fort Lauderdale (LPD 28) and Richard M. McCool Jr. (LPD 29).