The Sept. 10 ceremony at the company’s Bath, Maine, shipyard marked the joining of DDG 134’s first major modular sections. John E. Kilmer is one of seven Flight III destroyers now under construction at Bath Iron Works.
At the center of the Flight III design is the AN/SPY-6(V)1 Air and Missile Defense Radar. The system provides a substantial increase in capability over Flight IIA destroyers and supports the Navy’s requirement for enhanced integrated air and missile defense.
SPY-6 will operate within the ship’s Aegis Weapon System, which combines radar, command-and-control functions and weapons. The wider combat system includes anti-air and anti-submarine warfare capabilities, the MK 41 Vertical Launching System and Tomahawk strike weapons.
The destroyer will also conduct anti-surface and anti-submarine operations. Its multi-mission design allows it to address threats across the air, surface and subsurface domains while supporting strike warfare.
Linda Gilday, a former Navy civilian engineer and program manager, serves as the ship’s sponsor. She authenticated the keel by inscribing her initials on a steel plate that will become part of the vessel.
“To the shipbuilders of Bath Iron Works…I just want to say thank you,” Gilday said. “What you build in steel today, Sailors will depend on with their lives tomorrow.”
The ship is named for Navy Hospital Corpsman John Edward Kilmer, who received the Medal of Honor posthumously for his actions during the Korean War. Kilmer was mortally wounded during the Battle of Bunker Hill while shielding an injured Marine from enemy fire.
“We honor John Kilmer by building a Navy worthy of his legacy,” said Neil W. T. Hogg, deputy under secretary of the Navy for management. “The ship that carries his name will bring that same fighting spirit to the Fleet, built by American workers for the Sailors who will take her to sea.”
“The future USS John E. Kilmer will carry on Corpsman John Kilmer’s legacy of courage, service and dedication to our country,” said Capt. Jay Young, the Arleigh Burke-class destroyer shipbuilding program manager. “DDG 134 will be a welcome addition to the fleet, providing our Navy warfighters with an undeniable strategic advantage.”
Bath Iron Works is also building the future Louis H. Wilson Jr., William Charette, Quentin Walsh, Richard G. Lugar, J. William Middendorf and Thomas G. Kelley. All six ships are Flight III variants equipped for the Navy’s expanded air and missile defense mission.
“This ship is built by American shipbuilders for American sailors to protect America and our families,” Bath Iron Works President Charles F. Krugh said. “Our Navy deserves the best built, which are built here in the city of Bath, Maine.”
