Navy Destroyer Named For Medal Of Honor Recipient To Be Commissioned
The DDG 1001, the future USS Michael Monsoor, will be commissioned at 10 a.m. on Saturday at Naval Air Station North Island, according to a release from the Navy
The second of three Zumwalt-class so-called stealth destroyers built at Bath Iron Works will be commissioned Saturday in its homeport of San Diego.
The DDG 1001, the future USS Michael Monsoor, will be commissioned at 10 a.m. at Naval Air Station North Island, according to a release from the Navy. Monsoor's mother, Sally Monsoor, will serve as the ship's sponsor.
The ship honors Petty Officer 2nd Class Michael Monsoor, a Navy SEAL who was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor for his heroic actions in Ramadi, Iraq, on Sept. 29, 2006.
Monsoor threw himself onto a grenade to protect nearby members of his unit and others. His actions saved three fellow SEALs and eight Iraqi soldiers, U.S. Sen. Susan Collins said at the destroyer's christening in 2016.
Monsoor was “a consummate professional who faced terrorist enemies with aplomb and stoicism,” former Secretary of the Navy Donald C. Winter said at the ship's 2008 naming ceremony.
The future USS Michael Monsoor (DDG 1001)(U.S. Navy photo via Bath Iron Works)
The DDG 1001 departed Bath for the final time Nov. 9. It completed acceptance trials in February and the Navy took partial delivery in April.
In July, the destroyer's turbine blades were damaged during acceptance trials, and it returned to BIW ahead of schedule for repairs.
The DDG 1001 also had problems with the electrical system during sea trials in December 2017, when it returned to the Bath shipyard one day after departing. It resumed sea trials after repairs.
The future USS Michael Monsoor, at 16,000 tons, is 610 feet long with a beam of 87 feet and a navigational draft of 27 feet, according to the Navy. It is powered by two Rolls Royce main turbine generators, two Rolls Royce auxiliary turbine generators and two 34.6 MW advanced induction motors to speeds of more than 30 knots.
The DDG 1002, the future USS Lyndon B. Johnson, was launched in December at BIW. The third of the Zumwalt line, the ship is scheduled to be christened this spring.
The Navy decided to build only three so-called stealth Zumwalt-class destroyers amid concerns about elevated construction cost estimates.
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