The future USS Thomas Hudner (DDG-116) Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer successfully finished builder’s trials on March 31, the Navy said on Monday.
The trials included a set of in-port and four days of at-sea demonstrations that allowed shipbuilder General Dynamics’ [GD] Iron Works (BIW) and the Navy to assess the ship’s systems and readiness for delivery.
DDG-116 is an Aegis Baseline 9 Integrated Air and Missile Defense destroyer with an Aegis Combat System (ACS) that will let it link radars with other ships and aircraft for a more comprehensive view of a battlespace.
The next major milestone for the future Hudner is for it to return to sea for acceptance trials with the Navy’s Board of Inspection and Survey (INSURV) later this spring, the Navy said.
During those next trials, INSURV will inspect and evaluate all gears and systems to ensure readiness before the Navy accepts delivery of DDG-116.
“With the successful completion of these trials, we move closer to adding DDG-16 and her exceptional capabilities to the Fleet. The Navy and Industry team worked diligently to ensure the ship operates at peak performance,” Capt. Casey Moton, DDG-51 class program manager, Program Executive Office (PEO) Ships, said in a statement.
BIW is currently building three more Arleigh Burke-class destroyers: the future Daniel Inouye (DDG-118), Carl M. Levin (DDG-120), and John Basilone (DDG-122),