Bath Iron Works has been awarded a contract to construct an additional Arleigh-Burke Class destroyer.
The agreement adds on to the funds provided in the 2023 fiscal year under an extended contract to service the U.S. Navy’s Arleigh Burke-class destroyers.
The new ship DDG-148 will be named after Kyle Carpenter, who is the youngest living Medal of Honor recipient. Carpenter, a former U.S. Marine, was awarded the Medal of Honor in 2014 by then-President Barack Obama. Carpenter used his body to shield his fellow Marines from a grenade blast during a skirmish in the village of Marjah in Afghanistan’s Helmand Province in 2010.
“This award is a testament to the highly skilled and hard-working men and women of BIW and once again shows that ‘Bath Built is Best Built’” Republican Sen. Susan Collins said in a Thursday press release. “This destroyer will enhance our national security, protect good-paying Maine jobs, and provide long-term stability for the highly skilled men and women at BIW. As global threats continue to grow, investing in a strong and capable Navy is more important than ever.”
Rep. Jared Golden, a Democrat representing Maine’s 2nd District, called the contract “great news for Mainers.”
“As a member of the House Armed Services Committee, I’ve always advocated for Maine shipbuilding. This is great news for Maine workers, for the Navy, and for our national security,” Golden said on X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter.
