Nichols Martin
Huntington Ingalls Industries’ Ingalls Shipbuilding division has commenced construction activities of the Jack H. Lucas guided missile destroyer with the ship’s keel authentication.
The Arleigh Burke-class ship, also known as DDG 125, honors the name of a World War II veteran who signed up for the U.S. Marine Corps at the age of 14, HII said Friday.
Ruby Lucas, widow of the USMC veteran, and philanthropist Catherine Reynolds both serve as the ship’s co-sponsors and had their initials welded on the corresponding keel plate.
“Now my wish for this ship is that Jack himself would move over it,†the namesake’s widow said.
As an Arleigh Burke-class ship, the future USS Jack H. Lucas is designed to support a variety of mission types such as crisis management, subsurface warfare and power projection.
The Ingalls shipyard has so far built and delivered 21 Arleigh Burke-class vessels to the U.S. Navy, with four currently under construction.
Last year, HII received a potential $5.25B contract from the Navy to build up to six Arleigh Burke-class ships.
