USS Ted Stevens DDG 128 Flight III Arleigh Burke-class completes trials before U.S. Navy delivery.

American shipbuilder Huntington Ingalls Industries says the future U.S. Navy USS Ted Stevens DDG 128 Flight III Arleigh Burke class destroyer has wrapped up acceptance trials in the Gulf of Mexico under INSURV oversight. The milestone signals the destroyer's readiness for delivery and strengthens ongoing U.S. Navy fleet modernization.

The future USS Ted Stevens DDG 128, built by Huntington Ingalls Industries at its Ingalls Shipbuilding yard, validated propulsion performance, navigation accuracy, combat systems integration, and overall seaworthiness during Gulf of Mexico acceptance trials. Overseen by the Navy’s Board of Inspection and Survey, the successful completion, announced on November 21, 2025, confirms the ship fully meets the U.S. Navy’s rigorous requirements for delivery.
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The future USS Ted Stevens (DDG 128), a Flight III Arleigh Burke-class destroyer, underway in the Gulf of Mexico during acceptance trials conducted by Ingalls Shipbuilding and the U.S. Navy, November 2025. (Picture source: HII)

The USS Ted Stevens is the second Flight III Arleigh Burke-class destroyer constructed for U.S. Navy by HII at its Pascagoula shipyard, and among the first three Flight III destroyers overall to reach this stage. The Flight III variant is the most technologically advanced configuration of the Arleigh Burke class, designed to address the evolving air and missile threat environment well into the 21st century. It introduces critical upgrades that significantly enhance the U.S. Navy’s ability to conduct integrated air and missile defense in contested maritime theaters.

The cornerstone of the Flight III upgrade is the AN/SPY-6(V)1 Air and Missile Defense Radar (AMDR). Developed by Raytheon, this active electronically scanned array radar uses gallium nitride (GaN) technology to deliver over 30 times more sensitivity than the SPY-1D(V) radar it replaces. It significantly improves detection, tracking, and discrimination of modern threats, including low-observable cruise missiles, maneuverable ballistic missiles, and hypersonic weapons. The radar system is fully integrated into the Aegis Baseline 10 combat system, enabling simultaneous defense against air, surface, and subsurface threats with increased automation and sensor fusion.

To support these capabilities, the Flight III configuration incorporates substantial mechanical and electrical redesigns. This includes enhanced power generation and distribution systems, upgraded cooling and HVAC capacity, and modified topside structures to ensure optimal performance and electromagnetic compatibility for the high-power radar. Though Flight III destroyers retain the same hull form as earlier variants, their internal architecture and warfare systems represent a generational leap in capability.

During the acceptance trials, U.S. Navy inspectors evaluated DDG 128’s propulsion plant, navigation systems, damage control readiness, communications equipment, and weapons integration. Testing included live performance of critical systems at sea under simulated combat scenarios, confirming that the destroyer met all performance requirements and contractual specifications. The successful trial clears the path for final outfitting and delivery of the vessel to the U.S. Navy in the coming weeks, with commissioning expected in 2026.

The future USS Ted Stevens, named in honor of the late U.S. Senator from Alaska and longtime supporter of defense modernization, reflects the ongoing transformation of the U.S. Navy’s surface fleet. The Arleigh Burke-class remains the largest class of surface combatants in U.S. Navy history, with 74 ships currently in active service as of November 2025. First introduced in 1991, the class has evolved through multiple variants, and the Flight III series is expected to serve into the 2070s as the primary air defense escort for carrier strike groups, amphibious ready groups, and independent forward-deployed operations.

Ingalls Shipbuilding has delivered 35 Arleigh Burke-class destroyers to the U.S. Navy to date and is currently building five additional Flight III ships: Jeremiah Denton (DDG 129), George M. Neal (DDG 131), Sam Nunn (DDG 133), and Thad Cochran (DDG 135). Each of these hulls will include the SPY-6 radar and Aegis Baseline 10 system, ensuring consistency across the future surface fleet in line with the U.S. Navy's distributed maritime operations doctrine.

The addition of Flight III ships like Ted Stevens strengthens the U.S. Navy’s capacity to deter and defeat adversaries in increasingly contested regions, including the Western Pacific, the Eastern Mediterranean, and the high north. Their integration into carrier strike groups will provide the fleet with superior radar coverage, fire-control coordination, and multi-layered missile defense at a time when both China and Russia are fielding advanced anti-ship weapons and long-range precision-strike systems.

The successful acceptance trials of DDG 128 validate the combat readiness and technical superiority of the Flight III platform. The destroyer’s commissioning will reinforce the U.S. Navy’s modernization efforts, delivering enhanced capabilities to address emerging global threats and maintain maritime superiority.

Written by Alain Servaes – Chief Editor, Army Recognition Group
Alain Servaes is a former infantry non-commissioned officer and the founder of Army Recognition. With over 20 years in defense journalism, he provides expert analysis on military equipment, NATO operations, and the global defense industry.