Navy

Navy Accepts Ralph

Huntington Ingalls Industries’ (HII) Ingalls Shipbuilding division delivered the guided missile destroyer USS Ralph Johnson (DDG-114) to the U.S. Navy on November 15, 2017, with shipbuilders, ship’s force and representatives of Supervisor of Shipbuilding Gulf Coast in attendance.

Ingalls Shipbuilding completed builder's sea trials for USS Ralph Johnson (DDG-114). The Arleigh Burke (DDG-51) destroyer spent more than three days in the Gulf of Mexico testing the ship’s main propulsion, combat and other ship systems (HII photo)
Ingalls Shipbuilding completed builder’s sea trials for USS Ralph Johnson (DDG-114). The Arleigh Burke (DDG-51) destroyer spent more than three days in the Gulf of Mexico testing the ship’s main propulsion, combat and other ship systems (HII photo)

«Today’s delivery is a culmination of the hard work and dedication of thousands of shipbuilders, industry partners, the Navy and our Gulf Coast shipmates», said George Nungesser, Ingalls’ DDG program manager. «It is a pleasure for our Ingalls team to observe a well-trained crew take ownership of the ship. The shipbuilders of Ingalls will always be watching where you go and celebrating your successes».

The signing of the DD 250 document officially transfers custody of the ship from HII to the U.S. Navy. Ralph Johnson is scheduled to sail away from the shipyard in February and will be commissioned on March 24, 2018, in Charleston, South Carolina.

«This marks an important milestone in this ship’s life with the formal completion of construction», said Commander Jason P. Patterson, the ship’s prospective commanding officer. «I want to thank the shipbuilders for constructing this great ship named after a great man. The crew can sail with confidence that this ship will bring the fight to the enemy and take care of her team just like Ralph did».

USS Ralph Johnson (DDG-114) is named to honor Private First Class (Pfc.) Ralph Henry Johnson, who was awarded the Medal of Honor for his heroic actions that saved lives during the Vietnam War. Johnson shouted a warning to his fellow Marines and hurled himself on an explosive device, saving the life of one Marine and preventing the enemy from penetrating his sector of the patrol’s perimeter. Johnson died instantly. The Charleston native had only been in Vietnam for a little more than two months when he was killed at the age of 19.

Ingalls has now delivered 30 Arleigh Burke-class destroyers to the U.S. Navy. Other destroyers currently under construction at Ingalls include USS Paul Ignatius (DDG-117), USS Delbert D. Black (DDG-119), USS Frank E. Petersen Jr. (DDG-121) and USS Lenah H. Sutcliffe Higbee (DDG-123).

Arleigh Burke-class destroyers are highly 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.

Ingalls Shipbuilding delivered the guided missile destroyer USS Ralph Johnson (DDG-114) to the U.S. Navy on November 15, 2017. Signing the DD 250 document are (left to right) Commander Jason P. Patterson, the ship’s prospective commanding officer; Commander Scott Williams, program manager representative for Supervisor of Shipbuilding Gulf Coast; and Freddie Joe O’Brien, Ingalls’ DDG-114 ship program manager (Photo by Andrew Young/HII)
Ingalls Shipbuilding delivered the guided missile destroyer USS Ralph Johnson (DDG-114) to the U.S. Navy on November 15, 2017. Signing the DD 250 document are (left to right) Commander Jason P. Patterson, the ship’s prospective commanding officer; Commander Scott Williams, program manager representative for Supervisor of Shipbuilding Gulf Coast; and Freddie Joe O’Brien, Ingalls’ DDG-114 ship program manager (Photo by Andrew Young/HII)

 

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 07-15-17 Pearl Harbor, Hawaii
DDG-114 Ralph Johnson HIIIS 12-12-15
DDG-115 Rafael Peralta GDBIW 10-31-15 07-29-2017 San Diego, California