Destroyer Delbert D. Black passes acceptance trials

Last week, Huntington Ingalls Industries said that its Ingalls Shipbuilding division completed the third and final round of sea trials for the US Navy’s Arleigh Burke-class guided missile destroyer Delbert D. Black (DDG 119).

“DDG 119 just completed a very successful sea trial demonstrating shipboard systems to ensure the future delivery of another quality … surface combatant,” Ingalls Shipbuilding President Brian Cuccias said.

In February, the ship also wrapped up builder’s trials after spending three days underway in the Gulf of Mexico.

DDG 119 is the first ship named in honor of Navy veteran Delbert D. Black, who served as a gunner’s mate and was aboard the battleship USS Maryland (BB 46) during the attack on Pearl Harbor, Hawaii.

Delbert D. Black is configured as a Flight IIA destroyer, which enables power projection, forward presence and escort operations at sea in support of Low Intensity Conflict/Coastal and Littoral Offshore Warfare as well as open ocean conflict. DDG 119 is equipped with the navy’s Aegis Combat System, the world’s foremost integrated naval weapon.

Ingalls has delivered 31 Arleigh Burke-class destroyers to the US Navy. The shipyard currently has four DDGs under construction, including Delbert D. Black (DDG 119), Frank E. Petersen Jr. (DDG 121), Lenah H. Sutcliffe Higbee (DDG 123) and Jack H. Lucas (DDG 125), the navy’s first Flight III destroyer.