The first Flight III Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer, USS Jack H. Lucas (DDG 125), successfully completed acceptance trials, returning to Huntington Ingalls Industries’ (HII) Ingalls Shipbuilding division.
During acceptance trials, the ship and its crew conducted a range of demonstrations, reviewed by the US Navy’s Board of Inspection and Survey (INSURV) to validate specifications and requirements prior to delivery.
Being constructed by Ingalls for the US Navy, the Jack H. Lucas (DDG 125) represents the inaugural Flight III Arleigh Burke-class destroyer, featuring various design enhancements that collectively offer substantially improved capability.
Besides being equipped with a wide array of offensive and defensive weapons, DDG 125 configuration incorporates the AN/SPY-6(V)1 Air and Missile Defense Radar (AMDR) as well as the Aegis Baseline 10 Combat System. It also incorporates upgrades to the electrical power and cooling capacity.
Ingalls has successfully delivered 34 destroyers to the US Navy, and their production continues with five Flight III destroyers currently under construction: DDG 125 (Jack H. Lucas), DDG 128 (Ted Stevens), DDG 129 (Jeremiah Denton), DDG 131 (George M. Neal), and DDG 133 (Sam Nunn).
The final Ingalls-built Flight IIA ship, DDG 123 (Lenah Sutcliffe Higbee), departed the shipyard in April and was commissioned this month in Key West, Florida.
“As the first Flight III ship, the future USS Jack H. Lucas will bring cutting edge capability to the Fleet,” said Capt. Seth Miller, DDG 51 program manager. “This week’s trials represent a significant milestone in demonstrating the ship’s readiness for delivery and beginning test and evaluation efforts.”
Arleigh Burke-class destroyers serve as the foundation of the US Navy’s surface fleet. These ships undertake a myriad of operations, ranging from maintaining a peaceful presence to safeguarding national security. They provide a diverse array of combat abilities, including countering multiple threats from the air, surface, and subsurface domains.
