US Navy’s newest Flight III Arleigh Burke-class destroyer heads toward commissioning

The Flight III Arleigh Burke-class guided missile destroyer USS Ted Stevens (DDG 128) has departed HII’s Ingalls Shipbuilding division en route to its homeport in Norfolk, Virginia, ahead of its future commissioning in Whittier, Alaska.

DDG 128 is the second Flight III Arleigh Burke-class destroyer built and delivered by HII’s Ingalls Shipbuilding.

The ship represents the next generation of surface combatants, featuring the Flight III AN/SPY-6(V)1 radar system and the Aegis Baseline 10 combat system.

“The sail-away of Ted Stevens reflects the strong momentum of our Flight III destroyer deliveries and the team’s work to deliver the most capable and combat ready ships to the fleet,” said Chris Brown, Ingalls Shipbuilding DDG 51 program manager.

“Seeing DDG 128 depart Ingalls is a proud moment for us all, and we are honored to support the Navy with a ship that will strengthen U.S. maritime security for decades to come.”

USS Ted Stevens was delivered in December last year, after completing a series of sea trials. The ship is named in honor of former United States Senator from Alaska, Ted Stevens. Stevens was the longest-serving Republican US Senator in history during his tenure. He served as the president pro tempore of the United States Senate in the 108th and 109th Congresses and was the third US Senator to hold the title of president pro tempore emeritus.

Ingalls Shipbuilding currently has five additional Flight III destroyers under construction, with seven more in early pre-planning and material procurement phases.

To increase throughput and meet growing demand from the Navy, Ingalls is executing a distributed shipbuilding initiative, partnering with shipyards and fabricators beyond the company’s traditional labor market to improve schedule performance across all programs.

To date, Ingalls has delivered 36 Arleigh Burke-class destroyers, including the first Flight III, USS Jack H. Lucas (DDG 125), and Ted Stevens (DDG 128).

Flight III destroyers currently under construction include Jeremiah Denton (DDG 129), George M. Neal (DDG 131), Sam Nunn (DDG 133), Thad Cochran (DDG 135), and John F. Lehman (DDG 137). Ships in pre-planning include Telesforo Trinidad (DDG 139), Ernest E. Evans (DDG 141), Charles French (DDG 142), Richard J. Danzig (DDG 143), Intrepid (DDG 145), Robert Kerrey (DDG 146), and Ray Mabus (DDG 147).

HII recently launched USS George M. Neal.

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