Huntington Ingalls Industries’ (HII) Ingalls Shipbuilding division launched USS Paul Ignatius (DDG-117), the company’s 31st Arleigh Burke-class (DDG-51) guided missile destroyer, on Saturday, November 12, 2016.
«The DDG-51 program provides our U.S. Navy customer and our nation a series of highly advanced and capable warships», said Ingalls Shipbuilding President Brian Cuccias. «For 30 years, our talented shipbuilders have been building these much-needed, quality destroyers. Launching DDG-117 is an important milestone in the life of the ship, which will continue building toward fleet readiness in 2018».
USS Paul Ignatius (DDG-117) was translated via Ingalls’ rail car system to a floating dry dock. Once on, the dry dock was moved away from the pier, and it was ballasted to float the ship.
Ingalls has delivered 28 Arleigh Burke-class destroyers to the U.S. Navy. Other destroyers currently under construction at Ingalls include USS John Finn (DDG-113), USS Ralph Johnson (DDG-114), USS Delbert D. Black (DDG-119) and USS Frank E. Petersen Jr. (DDG-121). Construction on USS Lenah H. Sutcliffe Higbee (DDG-123) is scheduled to begin in the second quarter of 2017.
«Ingalls shipbuilders continue to partner with our Navy and Supervisor of Shipbuilding team to conduct these evolutions in a safe and efficient manner», said Kari Wilkinson, Ingalls’ vice president, program management. «This collective team put in a lot of hard work this week, and they should be very proud of their accomplishments».
USS Paul Ignatius (DDG-117) is named in honor of Ignatius, who served as Secretary of the Navy from 1967 to 1969 and was the Assistant Secretary of Defense during President Lyndon B. Johnson’s administration.
Arleigh Burke-class destroyers are capable, multi-mission ships and can conduct a variety of operations, from peacetime presence and crisis management to sea control and power projection, all in support of the United States’ military strategy. The guided missile destroyers are capable of simultaneously fighting air, surface and subsurface battles. The ship contains myriad offensive and defensive weapons designed to support maritime defense needs well into the 21st century.
Ship Characteristics
| Length Overall | 510 feet/156 m |
| Beam – Waterline | 59 feet/18 m |
| Draft | 30.5 feet/9.3 m |
| Displacement – Full Load | 9,217 tons/9,363 metric tons |
| Power Plant | 4 General electric LM 2500-30 gas turbines; 2 shafts; 2 CRP (Contra-Rotating) propellers; 100,000 shaft horsepower/75,000 kW |
| Speed | in excess of 30 knots/34.5 mph/55.5 km/h |
| Range | 4,400 NM/8,149 km at 20 knots/23 mph/37 km/h |
| Crew | 380 total: 32 Officers, 27 CPO (Chief Petty Officer), 321 OEM |
| Surveillance | SPY-1D Phased Array Radar and Aegis Combat System (Lockheed Martin); SPS-73(V) Navigation; SPS-67(V)3 Surface Search; 3 SPG-62 Illuminator; SQQ-89(V)6 sonar incorporating SQS-53C hull mounted and SQR-19 towed array sonars used with Mark-116 Mod 7 ASW fire control system |
| Electronics/Countermeasures | SLQ-32(V)3; Mark-53 Mod 0 Decoy System; Mark-234 Decoy System; SLQ-25A Torpedo Decoy; SLQ-39 Surface Decoy; URN-25 TACAN; UPX-29 IFF System; Kollmorgen Mark-46 Mod 1 Electro-Optical Director |
| Aircraft | 2 embarked SH-60 helicopters ASW operations; RAST (Recovery Assist, Secure and Traverse) |
| Armament | 2 Mark-41 Vertical Launching System (VLS) with 90 Standard, Vertical Launch ASROC (Anti-Submarine Rocket) & Tomahawk ASM (Air-to-Surface Missile)/LAM (Loitering Attack Missile); 5-in (127-mm)/54 (62) Mark-45 gun; 2 (1) CIWS (Close-In Weapon System); 2 Mark-32 triple 324-mm torpedo tubes for Mark-46 or Mark-50 ASW torpedos |
Guided Missile Destroyers Lineup
Flight IIA: Restart
| Ship | Yard | Launched | Commissioned | Homeport |
| DDG-113 John Finn | HIIIS | 03-28-15 | ||
| DDG-114 Ralph Johnson | HIIIS | 12-12-15 | ||
| DDG-115 Rafael Peralta | GDBIW | 10-31-15 |
Flight IIA: Technology Insertion
| Ship | Yard | Launched | Commissioned | Homeport |
| DDG-116 Thomas Hudner | GDBIW | |||
| DDG-117 Paul Ignatius | HIIIS | 11-12-16 | ||
| DDG-118 Daniel Inouye | GDBIW | |||
| DDG-119 Delbert D. Black | HIIIS | |||
| DDG-120 Carl M. Levin | GDBIW | |||
| DDG-121 Frank E. Peterson Jr. | HIIIS | |||
| DDG-122 John Basilone | GDBIW | |||
| DDG-123 Lenah H. Sutcliffe Higbee | HIIIS |
Flight III
| Ship | Yard | Launched | Commissioned | Homeport |
| DDG-124 Harvey C. Barnum, Jr. | GDBIW | |||
| DDG-125 Jack H. Lucas | HIIIS | |||
| DDG-126 Louis H. Wilson, Jr. | GDBIW |
The Ingalls-built destroyer USS Paul Ignatius (DDG-117) launched at first light Saturday morning, November 12, 2016 after translating to the dry dock overnight