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USS ''John Finn'' (DDG-113) is an '' Arleigh Burke-class'' ( Flight IIA Restart)
Aegis The aegis ( ; ''aigís''), as stated in the ''Iliad'', is a device carried by Athena and Zeus, variously interpreted as an animal skin or a shield and sometimes featuring the head of a Gorgon. There may be a connection with a deity named Aex, a ...
guided missile destroyer A guided-missile destroyer (DDG) is a destroyer whose primary armament is guided missiles so they can provide anti-aircraft warfare screening for the fleet. The NATO standard designation for these vessels is DDG, while destroyers which have a pr ...
in service with the
United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the naval warfare, maritime military branch, service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is the world's most powerful navy with the largest Displacement (ship), displacement, at 4.5 millio ...
. The contract to build her was awarded to
Ingalls Shipbuilding Ingalls Shipbuilding is a shipyard located in Pascagoula, Mississippi, United States, originally established in 1938, and now part of HII. It is a leading producer of ships for the United States Navy, and, as of 2023, is the largest private em ...
of
Pascagoula, Mississippi Pascagoula ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Jackson County, Mississippi, United States. It is the principal city of the Pascagoula metropolitan area, and is part of the Gulfport, Mississippi, Gulfport–Biloxi, Mississippi, Biloxi–Pascag ...
, on 15 June 2011. Ingalls has been a subsidiary of
Huntington Ingalls Industries Huntington Ingalls Industries, Inc. (HII) is the largest military shipbuilding company in the United States as well as a provider of professional services to partners in government and industry. HII, ranked No. 375 on the Fortune 500, was formed ...
(HII) since its acquisition in April 2001. Prior to the award, Ingalls had constructed 28 ''Arleigh Burke''-class destroyers, the last one of which was . On 15 February 2011, Secretary of the Navy
Ray Mabus Raymond Edwin Mabus Jr. (; born October 11, 1948) is an American politician and lawyer. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, he served as the 75th United States Secretary of the Navy from 2009 to 2017. Mabus previo ...
announced the ship's name to be ''John Finn'' after
John William Finn John William Finn (24 July 1909 – 27 May 2010) was a sailor in the United States Navy who, as a chief petty officer and aviation ordnanceman, received the United States military's highest decoration, the Medal of Honor, for his actions during ...
, the first
Medal of Honor The Medal of Honor (MOH) is the United States Armed Forces' highest Awards and decorations of the United States Armed Forces, military decoration and is awarded to recognize American United States Army, soldiers, United States Navy, sailors, Un ...
recipient of
World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
. He was so honored for machine-gunning Japanese warplanes for over two hours during the December 1941
attack on Pearl Harbor The attack on Pearl HarborAlso known as the Battle of Pearl Harbor was a surprise military strike by the Empire of Japan on the United States Pacific Fleet at Naval Station Pearl Harbor, its naval base at Pearl Harbor on Oahu, Territory of ...
despite being shot in the foot and shoulder, and suffering numerous shrapnel wounds. He retired as a lieutenant after thirty years of service and died at age 100 in 2010.


Design

''John Finn'' is the 63rd ''Arleigh Burke''-class destroyer, the first of which, , was commissioned in July 1991. With 89 ships planned to be built so far, the class has the longest production run for any U.S. Navy surface combatant. During its long production run, the class was built in three flights: Flight I (DDG-51 to DDG-71), Flight II/IIA/IIA T.I. (DDG-72 to DDG-124 & DDG-127), and Flight III (DDG-125, DDG-126 & DDG-128 to DDG-139). The ''Arleigh Burke''-class was also the first in the U.S. Navy to include anti-NBC (Nuclear, Biological, and Chemical) warfare protection. ''John Finn'' will be a Flight IIA ship, and as such, will feature several improvements in terms of
ballistic missile A ballistic missile is a type of missile that uses projectile motion to deliver warheads on a target. These weapons are powered only during relatively brief periods—most of the flight is unpowered. Short-range ballistic missiles (SRBM) typic ...
defense, and the inclusion of mine-detecting ability. As an ''Arleigh Burke''-class ship, ''John Finn''s roles include
anti-aircraft Anti-aircraft warfare (AAW) is the counter to aerial warfare and includes "all measures designed to nullify or reduce the effectiveness of hostile air action".AAP-6 It encompasses surface-based, subsurface ( submarine-launched), and air-ba ...
,
anti-submarine An anti-submarine weapon (ASW) is any one of a number of devices that are intended to act against a submarine and its crew, to destroy (sink) the vessel or reduce its capability as a weapon of war. In its simplest sense, an anti-submarine weapon ...
, and
anti-surface warfare Anti-surface warfare (ASuW or ASUW) is the branch of naval warfare concerned with the suppression of surface combatants. More generally, it is any weapons, sensors, or operations intended to attack or limit the effectiveness of an adversary's ...
, as well as strike operations.


Construction

In November 2013, ''John Finn''s keel was laid down at Ingalls Shipbuilding. The keel laying ceremony was attended by Laura Stavridis, the
ship sponsor A ship sponsor, by tradition, is a female civilian who is invited to "sponsor" a vessel, presumably to bestow good luck and divine protection over the seagoing vessel and all that sail aboard.Eyers, Jonathan (2011). ''Don't Shoot the Albatross!: ...
and former wife of retired Admiral James Stavridis. The ship was launched on 28 March 2015 and christened on 2 May 2015. On 7 December 2016, the 75th anniversary of the attack on Pearl Harbor, the ship was delivered to the U.S. Navy. The precommissioning crew moved on board the ship on 28 February 2017 and the vessel was commissioned on 15 July 2017 in
Pearl Harbor, Hawaii Pearl Harbor is an American lagoon harbor on the island of Oahu, Hawaii, west of Honolulu. It was often visited by the naval fleet of the United States, before it was acquired from the Hawaiian Kingdom by the U.S. with the signing of the Rec ...
, then homeported to
San Diego, California San Diego ( , ) is a city on the Pacific coast of Southern California, adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a population of over 1.4 million, it is the List of United States cities by population, eighth-most populous city in t ...
.


History

On 17 November 2020, ''John Finn'' successfully intercepted an
ICBM An intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) is a ballistic missile with a range (aeronautics), range greater than , primarily designed for nuclear weapons delivery (delivering one or more Thermonuclear weapon, thermonuclear warheads). Conven ...
using a SM-3 Block IIA missile. The target missile was launched from the test site on the
Kwajalein Atoll Kwajalein Atoll (; Marshallese language, Marshallese: ) is part of the Marshall Islands, Republic of the Marshall Islands (RMI). The southernmost and largest island in the atoll is named Kwajalein Island, which its majority English-speaking re ...
and simulated an attack on Hawaii. This was the first time that an ICBM had been successfully intercepted by an SM-3 and the first time a U.S. Navy ship had brought down such a missile. On 6 August 2023, ''John Finn'' and three other destroyers responded to a joint Chinese-Russian patrol in international waters near Alaska. The Chinese-Russian flotilla left without incident. Under the
United States Seventh Fleet The Seventh Fleet is a numbered fleet of the United States Navy. It is headquartered at U.S. Fleet Activities Yokosuka, in Yokosuka, Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan. It is part of the United States Pacific Fleet. At present, it is the largest of the ...
, on 24 January 2024, ''John Finn'' sailed through the sensitive Taiwan Strait following presidential and parliamentary elections on the island, drawing the ire of Beijing. "John Finn's transit through the Taiwan Strait demonstrates the United States' commitment to upholding freedom of navigation for all nations as a principle," the U.S. Navy said in its statement.


Deployments

*Maiden deployment December 2020 - April 2021


Awards

* Battle "E" – (2019), (2020), (2021) *
Navy Sea Service Deployment Ribbon A Sea Service Ribbon is an award of the United States Navy, U.S. Marine Corps, U.S. Coast Guard, the U.S. Army, and the NOAA Commissioned Officer Corps which recognizes those service members who have performed military duty while stationed on a Un ...
- (2020)


References


External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:John Finn (DDG-113) Arleigh Burke-class destroyers 2015 ships Ships built in Pascagoula, Mississippi