Article Posted on : - Jul 27, 2010

The Arleigh Burk-class guided-missile destroyer USS Gravely (DDG 107) in Pascagoula, Mississippi.

WASHINGTON (BNS): US Navy has accepted the delivery of the future USS Gravely from Northrop Grumman Shipbuilding in Pascagoula, Mississippi, on Monday.

Designated as DDG 107, USS Gravely is the 57th ship of the Arleigh Burke class of US Navy.

On June 28, the ship had successfully completed its acceptance trials, which were modified due to the oil spill at Gulf of Mexico.

US Navy's Board of Inspection and Survey (INSURV), has conducted a pier side test and inspection of the ship followed by a 36-hour underway period to assess the ship's main propulsion, auxiliary, steering, damage control equipment, navigation systems, and deck equipment as well as overall completeness.

"Though the oil spill forced us to modify our normal trial schedule, we were still able to deliver Gravely as originally scheduled," Capt. Pete Lyle, DDG 51 class programme manager in the Navy's Program Executive Office (PEO) Ships, said in a US Navy official news release.

Gravely is a multi-mission guided-missile destroyer, which is equipped with the US Navy's Aegis Combat System and it is designed to operate in multi-threat air, surface and subsurface environments.

The class provides outstanding combat capability and survivability characteristics while minimising procurement and lifetime support costs due to the programme's maturity.