Secretary of the Navy Ray Mabus has approved the Seal Beach Naval Weapons Station as the commissioning location of the guided missile destroyer Dewey, the Navy’s newest and most technologically advanced warship.
The event is scheduled to take place on Saturday, March 6, 2010. It will be the first time in the Navy’s 234-year history that a warship has been commissioned in Orange County.
Seating is limited. Invitations may be requested through the website www.deweycommissioning.org. Those without Internet access can request an invitation by writing to the USS Dewey Commissioning Committee at 12340 Seal Beach Blvd, #B, Box 254, Seal Beach, CA 90740.
The new destroyer honors Adm. George Dewey, most famous for leading his squadron of warships into Manila Bay on April 30, 1898, and destroying the Spanish fleet in only two hours without a single American loss. A popular hero of his day, Dewey was commissioned admiral of the Navy, a rank created for him, in March 1903.
The new ship, designated DDG 105, is the 55th of 62 Arleigh Burke-class destroyers either in commission, under construction or on order. The ship will be able to conduct a variety of operations, from peacetime presence and crisis management to sea control and power projection. Dewey will be capable of fighting air, surface and subsurface battles simultaneously and contains a myriad of offensive and defensive weapons designed to support maritime defense.
Deborah Mullen, wife of Adm. Mike G. Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, is the ship’s sponsor.
Naval Weapons Station Seal Beach is the Pacific Fleet’s premier ordnance loading, storage and maintenance installation. The base services approximately 50 United States Navy vessels annually.
