Ingalls Shipbuilding christens guided missile destroyer Ralph Johnson

Huntington Ingalls Industries’ (NYSE:HII) Ingalls Shipbuilding division christened the company’s 30th Arleigh Burke-class (DDG 51) Aegis guided missile destroyer, Ralph Johnson (DDG 114), today in front of approximately 1,000 guests, the shipbuilding company said in a media release.

“It’s been more than a quarter century since the start of construction of Ingalls’ first Arleigh Burke destroyer, the Barry (DDG 52),” said Sean Stackley, assistant secretary of the Navy for research, development and acquisition.

DDG 114 is named to honor Pfc. Ralph Henry Johnson, who was awarded the Medal of Honor for his heroic actions that saved others during the Vietnam War.

Ingalls has delivered 28 Arleigh Burke-class destroyers to the Navy. Other destroyers currently under construction at Ingalls are John Finn (DDG 113), Paul Ignatius (DDG 117), Delbert D. Black (DDG 119) and Frank E. Peterson Jr. (DDG 121).

“This program—like our LPD and National Security Cutter programs—is proof of the benefits of a hot production line and our ability to improve on cost and schedule with each new ship,” said Ingalls Shipbuilding President Brian Cuccias.

Mike Petters, HII’s president and CEO, also attended the ceremony, along with platform speakers Sen. Roger Wicker, R-Miss.; Rep. Steven Palazzo R-Miss.; Vice Adm. Ted Branch, deputy chief of naval operations, information warfare, and director of naval intelligence; and Lt. Gen. Ronald Bailey, the Marine Corps’ deputy commandant, plans, policies and operations.

Arleigh Burke-class destroyers are highly capable, multi-mission ships that 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. DDGs 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.

About Huntington Ingalls Industries
Huntington Ingalls Industries is America’s largest military shipbuilding company and a provider of engineering, manufacturing and management services to the nuclear energy, oil and gas markets. For more than a century, HII’s Newport News and Ingalls shipbuilding divisions in Virginia and Mississippi have built more ships in more ship classes than any other U.S. naval shipbuilder. Headquartered in Newport News, Virginia, HII employs nearly 36,000 people operating both domestically and internationally.