January 23, 1999 — "The courage and service of President Franklin Delano Roosevelt and First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt will serve as an inspiration to those sailors who sail ‘In Harm’s Way’ aboard this magnificent vessel," Admiral J. Paul Reason, USN, said this morning at Ingalls.
Adm.
Reason, Commander in Chief of the U.S. Atlantic Fleet, was principal speaker
for Saturday’s christening of the U.S. Navy Aegis guided missile destroyer
ROOSEVELT (DDG 80). The ship honors the 32nd President of the United
States Franklin Delano Roosevelt (1882-1945), and First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt
(1884-1962).
"As for courage, Franklin and Eleanor had plenty of it," Adm. Reason continued, "FDR refused to be hindered by polio, and Eleanor always stood up for what she knew to be right even in the face of considerable opposition."
Mrs. Nancy Roosevelt Ireland, of Greenwich, Connecticut, granddaughter of DDG 80's namesakes, christened the new ship "in the name of the United States and in honor of my grandparents." Maid of Honor for the christening ceremony was the Sponsor’s 14-year-old daughter, Miss Perrin Roosevelt Ireland.
"What the Roosevelts said about fear and courage could be a guide for the spirit of this ship and her future crews," continued Adm. Reason. "Everyone has heard President Roosevelt’s famous quote ‘...that the only thing we have to fear is fear itself.’ However, you may not be so familiar with Eleanor’s words — ‘...you gain strength, courage and confidence by every experience in which you really stop to look fear in the face. You must do the thing you think you cannot do.’
"May this ship and all who sail in her keep those words always in the forefront of their minds. May they live up to the Roosevelts’ inspiring example of courage when challenged and unswerving service to this the greatest nation on earth," he said.
ROOSEVELT is the 30th ship of the DDG 51 Class of Aegis destroyers, and the 13th to be launched and christened at Ingalls. These multimission ships are equipped with the Navy’s modern Aegis combat weapons systems, the world's foremost naval weapons system, which combines space-age communication, radar and weapons technologies in a single platform for unlimited flexibility while operating "Forward…From the Sea."
"Every time I come to Pascagoula, Mississippi, and to Ingalls Shipbuilding, I am impressed by the rich history of this area as the birthplace of many, many superb Navy ships," noted Adm. Reason. "The ships built by this great shipyard and the hardworking citizens of the Gulf Coast have served, and continue to serve the United States extremely well and extremely successful in every ocean, every sea, every water of the world.
"I am certain that this ship before us will be no different," he continued. "She, too, will be prepared to sail ‘In Harm’s Way’ whenever and wherever the United States’ interests require. She too will maintain freedom of the seas so vitally essential to the health of the world economy. She too will write a chronicle of steadfast honorable service in the annals of the United States Navy."
Dr. H. Lee Buchanan III, Assistant Secretary of the Navy, Research Development & Acquisition, praised ROOSEVELT as "a magnificent ship. Imagine what that ship looks like to an adversary — someone who is going to take on this ship, and others like it, in conflict. If that adversary has the same pause that I do when I look at that ship, then it will have done its job."
The destroyer will carry Tomahawk Cruise missiles, as well as Standard missiles to intercept hostile aircraft and missiles at extended ranges. Both Tomahawk and Standard missiles are launched from forward and aft Vertical Launching Systems (VLS). ROOSEVELT will also be equipped with the Phalanx Close-In Weapons System (CIWS), and Harpoon anti-ship cruise missiles which have a range in excess of 65 nautical miles and are fired from stand-alone launchers.
DDG 80 features the over-the-horizon LAMPS MK III anti-submarine warfare control system, which includes the SH-60B Seahawk undersea warfare helicopter. DDG 80 is Ingalls’ first Flight IIA Aegis destroyer. In it’s new Flight IIA configuration, an aircraft hangar has been added to accommodate the two SH-60Bs that will be assigned to DDG 80.
Ingalls was responsible for the design of the new hangar, and its associated compartments, as well as for incorporating the hangar into the total ship design program. The new design also features a zonal electrical system, an advanced water purification system, and other shipboard system improvements.
"Your Navy is very hard at work," Secretary Buchanan continued, "whether it is enforcing this nation’s policies in conflicts such as Desert Fox, or ensuring tranquility on the coast of North Korea. Your Navy is every bit as busy as it was during the Cold War. Every day, almost half of our ships are at sea."
Vice Admiral George P. Nanos Jr., USN, Commander, Naval Sea Systems Command, called DDG 80, "an exceptionally capable Aegis destroyer. It is fitting that this ship is named for our longest serving President and his First Lady. Their ideals will certainly serve as an inspiration to the 340 sailors who will take this ship into the fleet.
"The Roosevelts redefined America in the Depression," Adm. Nanos continued, "and in a similar way, Aegis destroyers and guided missile cruisers are redefining the way the U. S. Navy projects power. As we close the books on the 20th century, it is comforting to see yet another powerful ship out there to defend our interests in the world."
Rear Admiral William W. Cobb Jr., USN, Program Executive Officer for Theater Air Defense and Surface Combatants, Office of the Assistant Secretary of the Navy, called the christening "a great Navy day...on which we have the distinct honor to celebrate the naming of our newest warship — the 56th Aegis ship christened since the early 1980s. The 11,000 craftsmen here at Ingalls have a lot to be proud about. This great ship is further along and more technologically advanced than any Aegis ship we have ever christened."
The U.S. Navy's Aegis program, of which ROOSEVELT is the newest ship, is one of the most important shipbuilding programs in America today. Truly multimission combatants, Aegis ships are designed to provide primary protection for the Navy's battle forces, but are also the most balanced surface warships ever built. DDG 80 is 509.5 feet long, with a beam of 66 feet. Four gas turbine engines will power the 9,204-ton ship to speeds in excess of 30 knots.
Rear Admiral David Thomas Hart Jr., USN, Deputy Director, Surface Warfare, Office of the Chief of Naval Operations, called the christening the celebration of a beginning. "Back where I work in the Pentagon, we often describe our place in the sun where surface warfare begins. It is there that we try to look over the horizon and put definition to our Navy’s needs of the future," he said. "Translating vision to reality is what this ship represents. ROOSEVELT is a tangible result of extraordinary teamwork. For it takes no less than that to bring to fruition a project of such complexity."
"Two million hours of work have been put into bringing this ship, formerly known as ‘Ingalls Hull 5280,’ to this stage of construction; and one million more hours of work will be accomplished before she is complete," said Captain Harry J. Rucker, USN, Supervisor of Shipbuilding, Conversion and Repair, Pascagoula. "When the ship enters the fleet, she will be the finest warship in the world. Regardless of where ROOSEVELT will sail in the next half-century, her success will be rooted in the men and women who designed and built her."
The first 11 Ingalls-built Aegis destroyers are now in the Fleet. A 12th, USS PORTER (DDG 78), will be commissioned in March. Following ROOSEVELT, Ingalls has contracts and options to produce 12 additional Aegis destroyers.
"The team of Navy, Ingalls Shipbuilding and subcontractor employees throughout this country are partnering and producing a product so essential for the national defense of our nation and the free world," said Ingalls President Jerry St. Pe’. "We are very proud that this ship is named after Franklin and Eleanor — people who made great contributions to this country, and even more proud that they are represented here today by their granddaughter and great-granddaughter."
Construction of DDG 80 began at Ingalls on January 13, 1997. The ship's keel was laid on December 15, 1997. DDG 80 was launched on January 10, 1999. DDG 80 and her crew of approximately 340 officers, chiefs and sailors, will join the U.S. Atlantic Fleet, homeported in Mayport, Florida, following commissioning in mid-2000. Commander Matthew E. Bobola, USN, of Jacksonville, Florida, a 1982 graduate of The University of Southern California, will be the new ship's Commissioning Commanding Officer.