31st Successful Year!

Forward Deployed
  Operationally Relevant
      Capable

Providing current Ballistic Missile Defense (SM-3) and Air Defense (SM-6) capabilities to Sixth Fleet!

During 2022 USS Arleigh Burke:
– spent 157 days at sea in 2022 with an OPTEMPO of 49.9%
– advanced 69 Sailors to the next paygrade, the highest of any at-sea command in FDNF-E
– hosted visits from SECNAV and CNO
– conducted successful live-firing with SM-6
– completed a complex Selected Restricted Availability
– completed a successful INSURV at 31 years old young!

Relive the year here

The Arleigh Burke-class Guided Missile Destroyer – The world’s most successful post-war surface combatants

The USS Arleigh Burke (DDG 51) class of guided missile destroyers can rightfully be called the most successful class of surface combatants in the post-World War II era.  The lead ship was commissioned in 1991, and the Navy is still building them at Huntington Ingalls Industries Ingalls Shipbuilding in Pascagoula, Miss., and General Dynamics Bath Iron Works in Bath, Maine.  A total of 89 have been procured through FY2022, (with 70 delivered as of February 2022), including two in FY2022.

Edward Lundquist – Marinelink.com – Dec 21, 2022

Read entire article at Marinelink.com

Deployment Homecoming

USS Arleigh Burke (DDG 51) returned to home port after the second FDNF deployment on Oct 6, 2022. The deployment included:
– steaming 17,243 nautical miles
– six Strait transits
– seven replenishments at sea
– six port visits
– Atlantic Thunder-22, multi-national live fire on the Hebrides Range, including a live SM-6 firing

Toni Checchio

Congratulations to Toni Checchio on receipt of the Aegis Excellence Award.

Toni has been contributing to the success of the Admiral’s ships for over 30 years. As the Gas Turbine Generator subject matter expert, she was deeply involved with the precomm crew training and preparations for fleet introduction of the generator at the Land Based Engineering Site. The original industry design proved somewhat challenging, and she could be found many times aboard ship sitting in a generator module with the Sailors troubleshooting, correcting planned maintenance documentation, and improving parts provisioning, and eventually contributing to an updated generator design. She has continued as a technical expert on the class electrical plant as the design evolved from 440 to 4160 volts to support the higher power requirements in the Flight IIIs.

Her continued dedication to success of the class makes her a true Destroyer Leader.

The Arleigh Burke Class (DDG 51) Destroyer Shipbuilding Program Manager Capt. Seth Miller and NAVSEA Program Manager Mr. Michael Dugan present the AEGIS Excellence Award to Toni Checchio, a Naval Surface Warfare Center, Philadelphia Division electrical engineer, for her support during the DDG 51 Flight III (Flt III) development process on Aug. 9, 2022 at Philadelphia. Checchio began working on the Flt III electric plan design concepts in 2011. Her efforts led to the ship’s design being approved in 2015. (U.S. Navy Photo by Jamie Gates/Released)

October Destroyerman

The October issue of the Destroyerman is posted. Lots of 31st pictures and participation instructions for the annual membership meeting on Oct 27th.

Loss of a shipmate

U.S. Navy Releases Name of Deceased Arleigh Burke Sailor – US Navy Press Release – August 4, 2022

Seaman Recruit David L. Spearman was lost at sea on August 1, 2022.

“This bright, young man made an oversized positive impact on Arleigh Burke.  My entire crew’s thoughts and prayers are with Seaman Recruit Spearman’s family and friends.  We offer our most sincere condolences for their loss.”

“Thank you to the Swedish and German navies, the U.S. Air Force, and the Sailors from Arleigh Burke for their extensive efforts to search for our shipmate.”

CDR. Pete Flynn, Commanding Officer, USS Arleigh Burke

Spearman, of North Carolina, enlisted on Nov. 10, 2021. He reported to Arleigh Burke on April 21, 2022 after his training at Great Lakes, Ill.

Arleigh Burke In Memoriam Page