US Navy receives 34th Arleigh Burke Destroyer from Ingalls
Huntington Ingalls Industries (HII) has handed over the US Navy’s latest Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Lenah Sutcliffe Higbee (DDG 123).
The delivery follows the ship’s at-sea and pier-side trials last October to assess its onboard capabilities and operability.
“The program is proud to lead the construction and delivery of Lenah Sutcliffe Higbee,” US Navy DDG 51 Class Program Manager Capt. Seth Miller said.
“Our industry partners have delivered another highly capable ship that will provide our Sailors and Nation with warfighting lethality for decades to come. The delivery of this ship comes at a critical time to the Nation and will further strengthen the Navy’s Surface Fleet.”
The USS Higbee
Christened last year, the USS Higbee was named after the second superintendent of the US Navy Nurse Corps in 1911, the first woman to receive the Navy Cross.
She was among the first 20 women to join the newly-established corps in 1908.
The vessel was constructed with the Flight IIA configuration including the Aegis Combat System Baseline 9C2, a naval weapons system providing enhanced operational awareness, increased electronic countermeasures, and high firepower.
According to HII, the vessel is the final Arleigh Burke vessel to be delivered with the configuration, as the navy moves forward to integrate Flight III for its next destroyers.
Growing Arleigh Burke Fleet
HII is constructing other Arleigh Burke ships for the US Navy at its facility in Pascagoula, Mississippi.
Upcoming vessels include the USS Jack H. Lucas (DDG 125), USS Ted Stevens (DDG 128), USS Jeremiah Denton (DDG 129), and USS George M. McNeal (DDG 131).
